Cupid Always Finds His Targets, Even If He Shoots Blindfolded
by Anusmita
Summary: Kagura, Princess of Rakuyou and Okita Sougo, prince of Edo get married, like any royal couple. But each of them have their own personal and political reasons for agreeing to the match. To make matters more complicated, neither of them have ever seen each other before. Tied together by fate, will they get to know each other? Can they find love, amidst all their sorrows? COMPLETED.
1. Chapter 1

**Cupid Always Finds His Targets, Even If He Shoots Blindfolded**

An Okita x Kagura Fan fiction

 **A/N: So this is my second Okikagu fanfic set in a royal AU and it's going to be a multi-chaptered one! I hope you enjoy reading it!**

Disclaimer; I do not own Gintama and its awesome characters, except in my dreams.

 **Chapter 1: Never marry someone if you have never seen their face, because they might turn out to be extreme sadists.**

Wedding bells rang throughout the city, echoing gleefully. The atmosphere was festive and cheerful, as the people flocked to the giant hall in the middle of the city. The hall was all decked up with flowers, streamers and lights, in honor of the upcoming royal marriage. Soon, in due time, the marriage began.

The citizens of the kingdoms of Rakuyou and Edo watched as their princess and prince went through the wedding ceremonies, almost mechanically. Both had covered their faces with elaborate masks. Only their eyes could be glimpsed through the slits. Reflecting that eyes were the mirrors of one's true feelings, the priest ruefully thought that he was definitely not officiating over a happy marriage.

Kagura felt herself choke up as the old father beside them declared them husband and wife. She glanced at the man in front of her, thinking bitterly _, I'm the wife of that stranger now, yes? How ironic… Mami said that a woman can only smile when she gets married, but I don't feel anything now. Am I even married? Is this masked guy really going to be my life partner, when I don't even know what he looks like?_

Unseen to everyone, her lips trembled as she remembered her sweet, loving mother, who was always so gentle, so kind and who had also been the cruelest, leaving her daughter all of a sudden, never to come back again, just to go to some stupid place called 'Heaven'. Having her father and brother leave had also hurt a lot, but she could still hope they would come back. Maybe not any more though, as Baka niichan hadn't even attended her mom's funeral, and her bald Papi hadn't even turned up for her 'wedding'. But they were still around, unlike her Mami. Lost in her thoughts, Kagura just wanted the stupid rituals to get over already. Why fuss over something that was only an illusion? They didn't know each other in the least, hadn't even _seen_ each other. The only reason Kagura had agreed to the marriage was because she knew her responsibility as the princess of Rakuyou.

After her mother, the queen's death, her idiot dad had left abruptly and the kingdom was in near chaos. Without a ruler, there remained no one to control all the criminal elements in society, and there were certainly a great many in Rakuyou. In order to save her people, Kagura had to become the queen. But, as a blasted tradition went, she could never do so unless she was married to another royal. Which was why she was standing in a marriage hall, masked, marrying a prince she had never seen or heard of.

Sougo pursed his lips in frustration as the ceremonies dragged on. What the hell, since when had marriage become such a troublesome process? Silently cursing every tradition and princess of the continent, he wondered whether he would even let his 'wife' stay with him for a day. After all, he only required the title of a married man. His sister definitely hadn't specified anything about keeping his wife always beside him and moreover, he was the prince of the faraway planet of sadism. His sister….

She was the only reason Sougo had ever agreed to marry some princess he had never seen before. Mitsuba had always been sickly and a few months back, her health had taken a sudden turn for the worse. Lying on her deathbed, she had made her younger brother promise to be a responsible and just king and also to get married to a worthy princess, get a family and live well. It was the first and last request she had made of him and Sougo was prepared to do anything to keep it. But since he had no interest or desire to make arrangements for his marriage, he left everything to his adviser, Matsudaira 'Totsuan'. The old man had later told him of a princess of Rakuyou, who too was in urgent need of a partner. Sougo made no mention of marriage interviews or anything of that sort, for he wished to get the business over as soon as possible and also because no sane princess would ever agree to marry him once she discovered his true sadistic nature. Surprisingly, the princess too was equally willing to such terms, as conveyed by her messenger. And that was how Sougo found himself getting betrothed to a girl he had knew nothing about.

As the formalities were concluded, the priest chose not to ask the couple to kiss. He had a feeling that neither would appreciate it in the least. The people in general, though cheered and clapped as the royal couple climbed onto a beautiful carriage of gold, which then set off towards the bridegroom's kingdom, Edo. However, the faces of the retainers who followed the royal carriage were sadly, anything but celebratory. The princess' maids looked upset, worried that there was no guarantee that their dear 'little sister' would be happy with a complete stranger. However, they all looked up when their leader, Tsukuyo lightly scolded them, saying," Shame on ya'll, that make such gloomy faces! What would tha princess say ta see ya like this? This ain't gonna be making her any happier, so stop it! Now, we can only pray that we haven't made too bad a mistake, but we can keep on moving forward fer her, yanno. So tha' we can see Kagura smile another time, like she always does."

Meanwhile, inside the carriage, Sougo stared at the girl sitting beside him. She hadn't taken off her mask yet, making him more curious as to what she looked like. Totsuan had told him that the princess was said to be beautiful enough, and that she was definitely not a gorilla. Suddenly, he raised his eyebrows as the girl tugged at the strings attaching the mask to her face, removing it with a fluid motion.

What he saw surprised him. She looked nothing like a typical princess, with fiery red hair put up in a side bun and skin so white that it as well have been transparent. But what struck him most about the girl were her azure blue eyes, filled with spirit and spunk. She merely glared at him, huffing," I took off my mask, uh huh. Now take off yours! I don't want to travel with some masked creep, yes."

"Is that the way a princess speaks? You sound more like a gangster's brat. And who do you think you are to command the prince of Edo around? Are you sure you aren't an impostor?"

"Who the hell are you calling an impostor?! I'm Kagura, princess of Rakuyou! And I think you're the fake, wearing a mask to disguise yourself, uh huh!"

"I'll have you know that I'm the prince of Edo, Okita Sougo and there is no way in hell that I'll be listening to a brat like you. Besides, haven't you learnt any royal manners or etiquette?"

"Oh, I know you were expecting some weak, silly princess who'll bow to you and be all sugar and honey. But if that's what you're looking for, then you just married the total opposite, uh huh. Because I curse like a gangster, eat like a black hole, snore like an earthquake, fight like a demon and I'm damned proud of it!"

 _She's definitely one interesting princess… It'll be good fun to tame her and bring her down on her knees. I'll bet that she's all sass and no substance. Well, I should at least let her see the face of her future lifelong tormentor….._

Thinking thus, he pulled off his mask as well, noticing the brief flash of surprise in Kagura's eyes. _He looks different, compared to all the other princes I've had the misfortune to see before… Those ruby red eyes are beautiful… Oi, Kagura, snap out of it! Don't go falling for an absolute stranger!_

"Hypnotized by my dazzling looks, are we, China?"

"Who said your looks are dazzling, huh? You look plain creepy, with that smile! And what did you just call me?"

"I called you China. Are you deaf as well as brain damaged?"

"My name is Kagura, damn it! You know that, you sadist!"

"Well, you don't seem to be using my real name. And why ever are you calling me a sadist? You have completely broken my heart."

"You don't have a heart! And I'm calling you a sadist because you are one! Arggh, I can't believe I'm _married_ to someone like you…"

"That should be my line, married to a rude, ugly China brat like you. Well, as there's no changing it, why don't call me sadistic husband and become my play toy?"

And thus, the staff at the royal palace of Edo got one of the biggest shocks of their life when they saw their future queen walk up to the doors of the palace, followed by their rather beaten up prince. When the Vice Commander of the guards, Toushirou Hijikata enquired as to what exactly had happened on the way, the only reply he got was, " China busted up the carriage when I asked her to be my play toy. Now please go and die Hijikata san."

The next morning, after a rather uncomfortable night, for his wife had kicked him out of the bed, which she hogged herself, Sougo found himself cursing the day he had married the China girl. However, it would be false to say that he was not having a little fun too, but the world would be extinct before Sougo admitted to it. Hijikata sat at the breakfast table, covering each item with five layers of mayonnaise, even the coffee.

"Hijikata san, those items are edible. Please do not degrade them by drowning them in that dog food."

"How dare you insult the greatness of mayonnaise?! It can never degrade anything, on the contrast it makes things eatable! By the way, Sougo, where is your wife?"

"Still sleeping like a sloth. Oh, looks like the monster has finally woken up." Kagura came down the stairs, dressed in a simple white cheongsam with red flowers embroidered on it. Her hair was done up as usual and she sent a death glare at Sougo before sitting down at the breakfast table and grabbing everything within her reach. Hijikata and Sougo stared, both amazed and slightly disgusted, as she practically wiped her side of the dining table clean, sending the maids running frantically for more. Drinking his mayo topped coffee, Hijikata commented incredulously," Seriously, are you really a princess or an alien? However can you eat that much in such a short time?"

"Someone who's drinking coffee with mayonnaise doesn't have any right to say that, uh huh. You are so disgusting, Mayo freak. I don't believe that you are really the Vice commander and Knight of Honor of this kingdom too."

Sougo repressed a smirk as China openly insulted Hijikata. Really, he mightn't have made too bad a choice. At least he had got another ally against Hijikata; surely it would be easier to eliminate him now. However, he wanted to see whether the girl could really live up to her far fetched claims of being an excellent fighter. And this was definitely a pretty good opportunity right in front of him.

"Oh dear, Hijikata san, you just got insulted by a mere girl just now, even though the brat is going to become queen. Won't you defend the honor of the Shinsengumi and the mayonnaise you care about so much?"

"What is your point, Sougo? I'm not going to fight a defenseless woman, so don't think you can provoke me."

Kagura suddenly stopped eating, her eyes flashing with anger. "Did I just hear you call me a 'defenseless' woman just now, Mayora? Why don't you fight against me now and see how mistaken you are? Or are you underestimating me because I'm a woman?"

Hijikata stared at her, highly surprised. However, he barely had a chance to react as Sougo got up, smirking. "I'll take that challenge, China. Let's see if you can beat me. It won't be fair if you fight Hijikata, he'll just go easy on you. I, though, have no such restrictions, so are you prepared? Don't tell me you're going to back out now, China."

"You should be more worried about yourself, damned Sadist. I swear I'm going to kick your ass."

 **A/N: So there ends the first chapter. I am planning to make this fic a little long, with them slowly getting to know each other and lots of adventures too. Thank you very much for reading this story! Please send me suggestions, requests, anything you wish to. I'd really be grateful to you if you review as well, I love to know what you think about it. Constructive criticism and suggestions for improvement are also appreciated! And just as a prior notice, I've got a long month of exams in front of me, so I probably won't be able to update as soon as I want to, but I promise I'll update once in a week! Sorry about making you read this long a/n, see you soon in the next chapter!**


	2. Chapter 2

**Chapter 2: Never Underestimate A Woman!**

Yamazaki reflected that a lot of things had changed within a really short time at the royal palace of Edo. While it was quite true that it had hardly been a typical royal household before, with all the residents treating each other like a big, quarrelsome family, it was also true that things which had never happened before in the palace were taking place in front of his eyes now, and moreover, they seemed to be about to become routine.

Their future queen was currently fighting her husband with a purple parasol that could also shoot bullets, while said husband was swiftly dodging her attacks and slashing at her with a naked sword. Far from being a common marital tiff, it was seriously beginning to resemble a fully fledged duel between sworn enemies. The servants were all assembled on the balconies, watching their master and mistress fight, neither having any inhibitions about hurting the other severely. Yamazaki could only sigh and munch anpan as he watched them, wondering what sort of newly married couples behaved like this.

* * *

Sougo was, to say the least, surprised. The girl before him was truly as good a fighter as he and maybe even better. She attacked him relentlessly, leaving hardly any openings. He wondered whether she was even a princess when she kicked him in the stomach and bit him as he pinned her down to the ground with his sword. Leaping back gracefully to avoid her deadly umbrella, he ran forward to launch another attack, faintly aware that he was grinning widely for the first time in a few months.

Kagura breathed in heavily, jumping high up in the air to fire another barrage of bullets at her life partner. She could feel the excitement rushing through her veins; it really had been a long time since she had had such a good, fierce fight. Though she'd die before she admitted it, the sadist was really a rather good fighter. Swearing to herself that she'd crush that annoyingly handsome face of his into the mud, as he called out another taunt, she blindly charged at him, her umbrella aimed right at the tip of his nose.

After a few hours, both of them were sitting on the ground, too tired and beat up to fight any more. Kagura's cheongsam was full of holes and slashes, its color closer to coffee brown than white. Sougo's clothes were in a similar, if not worse condition. Their weapons lay beside them, scratched and broken. However, they still had enough energy remaining to insult each other in a most un-royal manner.

"Seriously, China, you look like you've just climbed out of a garbage dump. Isn't it already high time that you admitted you're a street gangster who's faking being a princess?"

"Like you're one to talk, Sadist! Even Sadaharu would not chew someone as ugly as you! And how many times do I have to tell you that I'm a damned princess?!"

"Princesses are supposed to be soft, sweet and gentle masochists. They are highly servile and obedient. That's the total opposite of what you are."

"Just what kind of a twisted brain do you have, huh? You want a slave, not a princess! And I'm never going to be soft, sweet or gentle with you!"

"Then what kind of a wife are you? Isn't a wife supposed to worship her husband?"

"That's pure sexism, uh huh. It's the husband that should be serving the wife, because we females are always miles better than you useless idiots, yes."

The servants and the Shinsengumi members who were watching the scene suppressed a strong desire to chuckle. It was rare that anyone ever talked back to their sadistic prince. Moreover, they had a feeling that with a rude, sassy fighter for a queen, life was going to be a highly enjoyable roller coaster ride.

* * *

A few days had passed and Kagura felt quite at home at the Edo castle. It wasn't all that different from Rakuyou, and she had already memorized the names of everyone who attended her. She knew that she had to leave for Rakuyou within a few weeks, but she was reluctant to do so, having begun to grow fond of most of the residents of the palace, except for the ruler himself, of course.

Thus, one morning, she skipped happily into the palace kitchen, shocking all the maids into a panic. The poor women feared that they would be punished for some great wrongdoing soon. Naturally, they couldn't believe their ears when they heard the girl pout and ask for an early morning snack, explaining that she was feeling particularly hungry after a midnight quarrel with the Sadist. Tama, the least shocked one of them all, immediately laid out a wonderful spread in front of Kagura, while telling the others to get more food ready.

After her early morning 'snack', which would have lasted anyone else for two days, Kagura marched into the Shinsengumi headquarters, happily enjoying the prospect of ordering the helpless men around. Thus, when Hijikata entered the headquarters, prepared to blast his lazy subordinates out of their beds, he found all of them wide awake; taking turns to train with Kagura. Or, to be more precise, to get beaten up by her. Sighing exasperatedly, he finally decided that it wasn't too bad, at least they were doing some sort of training. However, he immediately changed his mind when he saw Saitou teaching Kagura to shoot a bazooka, and the girl aimed the weapon right at him. And that was the first time that Hijikata landed up in the infirmary because of someone else other than Okita Sougo.

Sougo's eyes widened in surprise when Matsudaira informed him that Shinsengumi's demon vice commander was currently in the infirmary and would be incapacitated for a few days. As far as he knew, neither had he added any laxatives to Hijikata's food yet, nor had he planted any explosives, so how could that bastard have got injured? He decided that it would probably have been Zura who had done the praiseworthy deed and decided to go visit Hijikata, just to rub some Tabasco into his wounds.

Hijikata glared at his new king, who had just dropped by, looking far too pleased. He was certain that the demon spawn had come over to torment him further and not to offer sympathy.

"My, my, Hijikata san, look at you. Do you not feel any shame to lie in that state, being the Vice commander and all? Maybe I should just tell Totsuan to fire you already and promote Yamazaki; he'd make a better leader than you. By the way, who was it who committed this glori-ahem- terrible deed?"

"You were just about to say 'glorious', weren't you?! And don't you pretend that you are unaware that it was your wife that did it!"

"My wife? China? Well, at least she can do something that makes me happy. Guess she isn't just a useless, loud mouthed brat after all. I hope I can attend your funeral soon, Hijibaka san."

"Who the hell are you calling Hijibaka, dammit!"

Hijikata winced at the sudden pain that shot through his back. Growling at his inability to move even a little, he swore that he was going to be banning all firearms, especially bazookas, in the castle the very second he resumed his duties. That sadist couple would truly be the end of him one day…

He looked up quickly as footsteps sounded at the doorway. He had been expecting one of the Shinsengumi members or Totsuan or one of the nurses, but certainly not Kagura. He groaned mentally, definite that she was about to follow in the footsteps of her husband soon. So, when she offered him a bottle of mayonnaise and a pack of cigarettes, he was surprised beyond words, to say the least.

"What are you gaping at me for like that, Mayora? It's really creepy, uh huh. I never thought that you too were a disgusting lolicon."

"Oi, don't misunderstand me! I'm _not_ a lolicon like that stalker Toujou! And why ever have you come here?"

"I just came to see how effective bazookas are in knocking out the enemy, uh huh. I think I'll use it on the sadist too, next time he annoys me."

"I think you are the real sadist here! But, ehm, thanks for the mayonnaise and tobacco."

"There is nothing to say thanks for, yes? Those poisons threaten human life, it's better that they are kept away from normal living beings, uh huh. And don't call me that sadist's wife. It is unsedimented, uh huh. "

"I think you mean 'unsettling', Princess. But if you aren't his wife, who are you to him?" Hijikata raised his eyebrows questioningly.

"Who cares about grammar, yes? And as to who I am to that sadist king of yours, I'm his worst and most hated rival, uh huh. The same goes for him too." And she walked out, her long red hair dancing to and fro. Puffing at a cigarette, Hijikata silently wondered if even time could make the marriage a happy one. Probably not; love, and all that stuff were just illusions that hurt one the hardest in life.

Walking along the corridors of the palace, Kagura wished that she had an extra pair of eyes just to see all the new, foreign objects that seemed to be everywhere. Coming from a place like Rakuyou, where it was only the bare essentials for war and daily life that mattered, she was quite surprised to see all the small, tasteful decorations that filled the palace. She decided that they made the place prettier, and that she too was going to take stuff like this to the Rakuyou palace. Tsukky and Anego would really like them and most importantly, they could give any place a homely feel, something that had left along with her dear Mami.

Her smile fading as she recalled her mother, Kagura's steps slowed down. Suddenly, she stopped at an open door, sharply catching her breath.

The sadist was standing in front of a portrait of a woman very much similar to him. His head was bowed and were those tears that she saw running down his cheeks? The sadist was …. crying.

 _Huh? I'm not imagining stuff, am I? No, that can't be, that pinch really hurt! But why is the sadist crying like that? I didn't even think a guy like him could cry…. Whatever is the matter with him? Should I go tease him, or should I just ignore him? Damn it, why do I feel so strangely upset because that idiot's crying?_

Sougo suddenly whirled around, his eyes flashing with rage, drawing his sword to cut down whoever had walked in on him when he was most defenseless. He started on seeing that his sword had been blocked by Kagura's umbrella. The girl herself looked stunned at his sudden display of rage and a faint quiver shook her umbrella. Resuming his deadpan expression once more, Sougo asked, his voice colder than the Arctic winds, "Just what do you think you are doing here, China?"

"I was just taking a walk around when I passed the door, Sadist! Do you seriously try to kill anybody who walks in on you? Just how cruel can you get, huh?"

"I'm in no mood for your brainless bickering, China. **Now, just** **get lost**."

Kagura involuntarily gulped on seeing her rival so mad. For once, she said no more about his behavior and did as he ordered. Sougo watched her go, his deadpan expression collapsing as he once more faced the portrait of his late sister.

* * *

Tama looked up from her cleaning, as she saw Kagura enter the kitchen in a rush, plop down on a chair and pout like an annoyed, bewildered and hungry child. Guessing that what the girl would appreciate best were probably not questions, but a lot of food, Tama laid out a bowl of delicious chicken soup and a jar of sukonbu in front of the girl. Kagura eagerly devoured everything in front of her, feeling much, much better once her stomach was full again. She grinned gratefully at Tama, thanking her many times over and over. The maid listened with a smile, it was quite rare for her to receive such high praise, given so freely. Finally, she asked delicately," Is there anything troubling you, Kagura sama? I may not be able to do much, but sharing one's troubles can lighten them by an unbelievable extent."

"I guess so, Tama. That's what Anego used to say too… But you don't have to tell me that, it's the damned Sadist who needs to be told that!"

"Why, Princess? Is there something wrong with the Prince?"

Kagura narrated the happenings of the past hour to Tama with a lot of detail and vigorous actions to emphasize her indignation, shock, etc. The maid listened, her eyes briefly darkening with sorrow, for she knew what the girl in front of her was talking about. Ever since Queen Mitsuba had passed away, the prince had never truly been quite the same as before, often venting his rage and frustration on Hijikata, who had loved his sister and had won her love. She frowned as she realized that Kagura knew nothing of this and no one in the palace had even thought of telling her anything about it before.

"Kagura sama, I can explain this. Though it's really irresponsible of them not to have told you of it before… Okita sama had an older sister, named Mitsuba. She was the lady you glimpsed in the portrait. Their parents had died while they were young and she was like a mother, perhaps even more than that for Okita sama. Well, Mitsuba sama had always been physically weak and many doctors wouldn't give her too many years to live. But she held on… Then she met and fell in love with Hijikata sama, but there was no way that a marriage could happen, due to the great difference in their standings. I believe Okita sama has always resented Hijikata for somehow taking his beloved sister away from him and never returning her love. Mitsuba sama died very recently, just a few months ago and her last wish was that Okita sama get married and be a good, responsible ruler… He probably did not mean to be so fierce with you, so don't take it too deeply to heart, Kagura sama."

"Who said I'm taking that idiot sadist's actions to heart? I don't care what he does in the least; I only want to beat him up! So that was why he agreed to the marriage, uh huh. Thanks for telling me and also for the food, Tama. Can I make one more request of you?"

"Hime sama, you can hardly make requests of me when it's your right to order me. I will accede to whatever you say."

"Friends don't order each other, Tama! From now on, I want to be called simply 'Kagura', yes? No need for formalities with me, uh huh. Besides, it's not like I'm really the queen or princess or anyone as important as that. I'm just a passing guest, who'll be leaving when her time is up. But I'll make sure to knock sense into the head of that damned idiot before I leave, uh huh."

Tama looked a little sad as she asked, "You're leaving, Kagura sama?"

"I can't stay here forever, yes? And besides, it's not like anyone will miss me too much. And if I don't go, god knows what all the idiots in my kingdom are going to do. They might even start a civil war, uh huh. And my family might be worried about me…"

Tama had never in her life contradicted a princess and she didn't make an exception that night as well. But she thought quietly that if she had, she would have told the childish princess that half of what she said was totally wrong.

* * *

The next morning, Sougo left his room at dawn, carrying a packet of super spicy rice crackers and a bottle of Tabasco sauce. He went down to the royal cemetery, where his sister slept and placed the offerings on her grave. It had been three months since she died and her death hurt like it was only a day old. He didn't cry, but he could still feel his eyes blurring with liquid.

As he walked out, he noticed a huge bazooka pointing straight at his face. And of course, it was his wife wielding it, a devilish grin on her face.

"Oi, China, what the hell are you doing? Do you hate being married so much that you wish to become a widow? Though no one will even want to marry a pig like you, so you'll just have to stay a widow forever. "

"Who the hell are you calling a pig?! And of course I hate being married to a Sadistic jerk like you! Now why don't you go straight to hell and stop insulting me?!" However, she hardly got a chance to fire the bazooka as Sougo dashed forward, slashing the barrel into two. Kagura pulled out her umbrella and it soon degenerated into a violent street fight, with the opponents using all the dirty tricks they knew, including biting, kicking, scratching and a lot more.

And thus, when they were about to reenter the palace, the guards stopped them, for the simple reason that they looked for like truant school children after a catfight than the good looking, polished and dazzling royals they actually were. After decreeing a punishment of sadistic torture for the errant guards, Sougo vaguely noticed that the pain in his chest that had been present since the previous night had almost vanished. His broken ribs still hurt like hell, though.

 **A/N; So there ends the second chapter! I wrote this in parts while studying for a math exam, so I apologize if the flow isn't too smooth. A universe of thanks to all those who read, followed and reviewed this story! Especial thanks to Akely for her beautiful review; I hope I have justified your trust, Akely!**

 **Please send me suggestions, requests, anything you wish to. I'd really be grateful to you if you review as well, I love to know what you think about it. Constructive criticism and suggestions for improvement are also greatly appreciated!**


	3. Chapter 3

**Chapter 3: The More You Deny Something, the Truer It Is**

Sougo yawned and rolled about in his extremely comfortable bed, not at all willing to get up. After all, he was the prince; there wasn't anything that he couldn't get his subordinates do for him while he lazed around. Suddenly, the cozy silence of his bedroom was broken by a tremendous blast and a loud burst of laughter from a few floors below. Sougo tried, futilely, to pull his mask over his eyes and go to sleep again, but there was no way he could, and was that just barking he heard just then?

Swearing to kill the person who had disturbed his sleep in the most sadistic and painful ways possible, the annoyed prince headed down the stairs. When he finally reached the source of all the commotion, he saw a rather 'unique' sight. Kagura, or China, as he always thought of her, was clearly playing fetch with a huge white dog, which was barking loudly and leaping after a tree log. Her laughter and yells sounded throughout the palace, along with Hijikata's desperate scolding and warnings. The servants too had gathered to watch and on the whole, with the exception of Hijikata, everyone seemed highly amused. However, their grins faded when they noticed their sadistic prince standing on the foot of the steps, clearly pissed off.

Kagura soon noticed him as well, partly due to the sudden silence of the servants and her smile changed into a glare. "What are you doing here, Sadist? You're spoiling the fun with your ugly face, uh huh."

"Oi, China, have you got any right to say that? In case you don't know yet, which may be surprising, even though you're the biggest moron in the world, I'm the ruler of this place and I'll do as I like. Besides, with a face like that, I'm astonished that you can even look at yourself in the mirror."

"WHAT THE HELL DID YOU JUST SAY ABOUT ME, SADIST?! DO YOU WANT TO GET KILLED, HUH?"

And thus another of their regular, meaningless and violent quarrels started again, continuing until breakfast was laid out on the table. Kagura immediately proceeded to eat through at least thirty helpings of rice, eggs and sweets, while Sougo, Hijikata and the others ate much more slowly and took a lot fewer helpings. The dog, Sadaharu, whom Kagura had apparently found in front of the palace gates in the morning was fed by Tama, who had taken a liking to him. Sougo had been firm that the dog be thrown out immediately, but he changed his mind when he saw the dog chomp down on Hijikata's head and received a glare filled with killing intent from Kagura.

Later that day, Sougo received a visit from the prince of the Mimawarigumi, Sasaki Isaburou, apparently to congratulate his upcoming coronation as king. However, he paid no attention at all to the meeting, which had anyways degenerated into a most impolite war of words between Hijikata and Sasaki. The quarrel or meeting was suddenly cut short by an explosion of yelling, barking, laughing and screaming from the palace grounds. Sasaki adjusted his monocle, looking slightly alarmed and said, "I fear, prince, that a rebel army has just attacked the palace. Of course, this is just an elite hypothesis of mine. But, you do not seem concerned?"

The said prince simply yawned, looking totally unconcerned and replied, "So even elites make mistakes then… That's just an idiotic China brat messing around with her dog and a bazooka." As he said so, he made a mental note that some of the China girl's madness had definitely rubbed off on him, for he found nothing abnormal or even different about what he was saying. Hell, he hadn't even been too surprised in the morning; somehow he had accepted that it was something only she would do and found nothing out of the ordinary in her behavior.

Soon after the meeting was over, Kagura burst into the throne room, twirling her parasol happily. However, her expression soured the moment she saw her 'husband' lazing on the throne. Kagura simply didn't know why, but every time she saw the jerk, her temper would come very close to snapping. She decided that it was probably his annoying, deadpan face that always rubbed her up the wrong way and his insults would then be the last straw before they started fighting again. Well, maybe she would just ignore him this time, she didn't want to give Tama anymore work repairing the castle after their fights. But…

"Ah, what a tiring day… I've had to attend meetings after meetings, take so many decisions affecting the fate of kingdoms, I'm totally exhausted now. Well, some people do have it lucky, they can do crazy stuff like playing with a giant dog all day long and wasting all their time in the most idiotic and noisy way possible…."

"Who the hell are you calling lazy and idiotic, you sadist?!"

"So you admit that you are lazy, idiotic, noisy and crazy, do you, China? How honest of you. Really, I wonder what's the use of even having a queen like you…"

"Having a jerk like you as king is just as useless! And besides, I don't want to be a queen if I have to live with someone as irritating as you!"

 _What? Does she really dislike me that much? But why does that bother me… No matter, China, I'll surely pay you back for those words, I swear on my pride as the prince of the planet of sadists._

"Don't talk as if you'll become queen if you want to, China. In the first place, you are only here by sheer luck. That forced marriage means nothing to me, and you neither have the standing of a queen or the authority. All I needed was the namesake of a married man, you mean nothing to anyone over here." _There. That should pierce pretty deeply. Revenge is truly sweet… Wait, her eyes…Don't tell me, she's crying?_

"Oi, China glutton, are those tears in your eyes…"

"S-Shut the hell up! As if your words can m-make me c-cry, you Sadistic bastard!"

And she whirled around, fairly dashing out of the room without a backward glance. But the two men in the room had already noticed her eyes sparkle with unshed tears which fell down her cheeks as she had turned to leave.

Hijikata took a long draw of his cigarette, forgetting that it was unlit, and walked out too, though not before saying, "You'll regret saying that one day, Sougo. Revenge isn't sweet when it's mixed with a woman's tears."

"Just go and die, Hijikata san." He replied, trying to ignore the sudden pang of guilt in his chest.

* * *

The evening sky was obscured by clouds, dark and grey. A light, depressing rain fell, the raindrops resembling tears. A girl sat on a tree, completely wet by the rain which also washed away the traces of tears on her cheeks. The continuous rain reminded Kagura of her home back at Rakuyou, where she would sit in the rain, crying because she was alone. And now she was alone again.

 _The sadist was right for once, huh. I'm only the namesake of a queen, nothing more. It makes no difference if I stay or leave, yes? Though Tama , Jimmy and the others are sort of my friends, there's no way this can be forever, uh huh. They too will forget me soon if I leave… And the sadist already said that he has no real need for me… Curse him, how can he make a maiden like me cry like this, yes?! But I think I'll leave tomorrow, delaying what will eventually happen is just going to make goodbye harder. Tsukky and Anego will be happy to see me, but they'll be sad to know that I married a man who loves the title, not me. But it's not like I want the Sadist to care for me anyway! But if I'm gone, who'll feed Sadaharu? Maybe I'll have to ask Tama…_

* * *

The next morning, when Sougo woke up, as late as ever, a weird feeling crept over him. Something was missing, something was different, compared to the usual morning… And suddenly it struck him. It was far too silent. Ever since that China monster who called herself a princess had come, mornings had become filled with noise, laughter and yelling. It was true that he found all of it extremely irritating, but nevertheless, the absence of it bothered him. Deciding to find out the cause, he dressed quicker than usual and walked down the stairs to see something he had never expected. With China around, Sougo expected everything, but the sight before his eyes was really something he had never cared to think about before.

China stood in the middle of the hall, a slim suitcase grasped in one hand, and her purple parasol in the other. The golden carriage in which they had arrived stood outside the doors, clearly waiting to take her away. She was presently bidding goodbye to Sadaharu, hugging the dog tearfully. Hijikata, Matsudaira and the rest of the Shinsengumi stood and watched, their faces full of dismay. The maids were weeping softly and the even the air felt heavy.

Hearing Sougo arrive, Kagura stiffened, but she refused to turn around. She was _not_ going to let the sadist see her cry and she knew that seeing his face would make it even harder for her to leave without making a mess. As if from far away, she could hear Hijikata say, "Oi, Sougo, aren't you going to stop her? Is this what you really want?" Unconsciously, her ears strained to catch the sadist's reply, "Have all your screws finally fallen out, Hijikata san? She can do as she pleases; it makes no difference to me either way. Besides, she too married just so that she could ascend the throne of her kingdom, right China?"

For once, he got no reply as the girl simply walked straight out, got in to the carriage which soon disappeared in a cloud of dust, far, far away into the distance.

"Sougo! How could you let China san walk away like that? It is natural for married couples to fight, but they must also resolve the issue quickly! How will you two live without each other? Toshi, you must advise our son! **"**

"I don't recall being that devil's parent, Kondou san! And please don't turn this into a soap opera. Sougo, you can deny it all you want, but you'll eventually realize what that girl means to you, and to all of us as well. But it might just be too late then."

Sougo's face was as deadpan as ever, as he requested Hijikata to just shut up and undertake a journey to the Underworld. Ignoring the dismal faces of the servants and the Shinsengumi, he walked back up the stairs and simply got into bed again, pulling a sleeping mask over his eyes.

* * *

Several miles away, in Rakuyou,

Three women stood at the entrance to the palace, talking deeply. A blonde lady, with scars on her face, smoked a kiseru as she talked to a glasses wearing female ninja with purple hair. A brown haired woman listened to them talk, smiling sweetly. Suddenly, the sound of the wheels of a carriage roused them all from their talk and they immediately rushed towards it, forgetting everything else.

Kagura leapt out of the carriage, running straight into the arms of her 'older sisters', who were in fact her closest retainers. Tsukuyo, Tae and Sachan were delighted to see their princess safe and sound, even though they were filled with worry as to the possible reasons of her arrival. They quickly escorted the girl to her rooms and helped her freshen up after the long journey, finally sitting down to talk over a huge meal.

"So, Kagura chan, how have you been? Was it comfortable at the palace of Edo? But most importantly, how was your husband?"

"I've been very well, Anego, you don't have to be worried, uh huh. Edo was an awesome place to live in, I really loved it! Everyone was very kind and generous and I had lots of fun, uh huh."

"I'm glad about that, Kagura, but what about yer husband? Ya haven't told us anything about him yet."

"He's a total sadist, Tsukky! His face is always very, very annoying, it has no expression! He always rubs me up the wrong way, just by his mere presence! He doesn't even call me by my name, instead he calls me China. And he keeps on insulting me, calls me a glutton, a monster, a gangster. I really hate him, he's the one of the worst guys I've ever met in the world!"

Tsukuyo, Tae and Sachan stared at each other in surprise, not unmixed with both amusement and dismay. Tae said cheerfully, "How very rude of him. But I hope you too called him a few choice names, Kagura chan. Men have to be put in their place after marriage."

"If he's a sadist, then it's problematic because you're not a masochist, Kagura! How will the two of you be able to play like a perfect S&M couple?"

"That's enough of yer sick fetishes, Sarutobi! Kagura doesn't need ta know about anything like that! And what's actually important here is tha, Kagura, ya like him? Can ya really spend a lifetime with him, yanno?"

"Tsukky, what are you saying? Me and the Sadist, we always get into a brawl every time we see each other! I don't even want to see his ugly face most of the time! That's more like sworn rivals than a married couple, yes?"

"I wouldn't be too sure, Kagura chan. Sometimes, those two are not very different. Remember what Hinowa san told us about your bald father regularly getting kicked out by your mom?"

"If you say so, Anego. But it's not as if the Sadist will even miss me once, he himself said that it makes no difference to him whether I'm gone or not. That jerk only wanted the 'title of a married man'; he hardly cares about the marriage itself. So, there's no question of me staying with any more, is there?" A shocked, sorrowful silence fell over the table as Kagura abruptly got to her feet and left the table, her meal still only half eaten.

* * *

Meanwhile, in Edo, a sandy haired prince lounged lazily on his balcony, staring at the full moon. Struck by a sudden realization, he muttered a few words to himself, which were soon carried away by the night breeze.

"It sure is quiet without China around…."

* * *

 **A/N: So there ends the third chapter. The next chapter is probably going to be about how our Sadist copes without his best rival…**

 **A gigantic thank you to everyone who read and liked this story, thank you so much! I really hope you liked reading it. Please do take the time to leave a review, your support never fails to keep me going! Feel free to send me suggestions, requests, anything you wish, I love to know what you think about it. Constructive criticism and suggestions for improvement are also greatly appreciated!**


	4. Chapter 4

**Chapter 4: You Always Miss the People That Annoy You The Most**

 **So here is the fourth chapter, hope you enjoy reading it. I'm adding the replies to the reviews here because I really didn't get the time to thank these awesome people personally.**

 **Akely: Thank you for the wonderful review, as always! Yeah, Sougo's just too dense, but he does realize some of his feelings soon! So will Kagura, because absence makes the heart fonder… I hope you like reading this chapter too.**

 **Hellooo: Love you too** **! I'm really glad that you liked it, though I now feel a little bit guilty for making them so heartbroken like this, lol. Hope you like this chapter too, and thank you so much for reviewing!**

 **nathan19bane: Thanks for the review and the motivation! Have fun reading this chapter!**

 **Guest: Thank you so much! I'm really happy you think the story is a good one. Hope this chapter is just as interesting and that you enjoy reading it too!**

 **Now, let's move on to the story!**

* * *

It had been two days since Kagura had left and Sougo still couldn't specify what he felt about it. Kondou repeatedly tried to convince him that he really missed the girl and wanted to bring her back, while Sasaki observed that he could now be a lot more relaxed without the threat of an umbrella constantly aimed at his back. Hijikata rarely commented on it, other than telling him that he should already hurry up and realize his feelings and the rest of the Shinsengumi were just too scared to give their sadistic prince relationship advice. Totsuan yelled at him to be a man and resign himself to whatever fate had in store and also to act on his feelings.

Sougo had an idea that their advice was well meaning, but he never thanked them for it, especially not Hijikata. And moreover, all the advice seemed totally useless to him; if he couldn't even classify his feelings, how the hell was he supposed to act on them?

But he did know that he felt that something was missing every time he woke up in the morning or simply lazed about the castle. It was far too quiet, far too orderly and somehow…. really wrong. Ever since China had arrived, he had hardly known what insanity to expect the next moment and there had almost never been pin-drop silence in the castle. Even if there had been a few such moments, it always meant that she was aiming her umbrella or some deadly projectile at his head and didn't want him to be alerted of the fact. Sure, he always found it extremely annoying and wished fervently for a few moments of peace. Hell, he couldn't even sleep undisturbed with her around. But now, when it truly was totally silent and he could sleep as much as he liked, he realized that he didn't really want something like this either.

But, the strange peace and quiet aside, if Sougo had to somehow choose a word that expressed his feelings the most, it would be that he was _bored_. Without China around, there was no one to fight with, no one he could insult freely without undermining his reputation as prince, not that he bothered too much about it anyways, and no one who brought a burst of excitement in his life. Even assassinating Hijikata had gradually lost its fun. He could torture the Shinsengumi, but the prospect hardly excited him. _I really must be going crazy now… Seriously, since when did fighting with China become the only thing that really interested me? When ever did that insufferable glutton become such an important part of the castle that everything seems 'wrong' without her? I'll really be losing my standing as the prince of Sadists if I go on like this….._ But deep down inside, Sougo somehow knew that he would probably never be changing those foreign feelings anytime soon.

* * *

Meanwhile, in the servants' quarters of the palace, Tama and the other maids were holding a serious discussion about the incredible denseness of their master.

"Really, it's already been two days without her and he still doesn't get that he misses her yet…"

"Sougo sama now spends most of the day walking around aimlessly, with a really scary aura when anyone approaches him… It's obvious that he's somehow expecting it to be Hime sama. But I heard he fired a bazooka at Hijikata san for pointing that out…"

"I really miss the princess; we have never had so much fun in the castle ever since Queen Mitsuba died. She always treated us like friends, not at all like her retainers. Besides, the palace feels so empty without her."

"And it's really difficult to feed the giant dog now, he only wants to eat from his mistress! We really do need the princess back again. But how ever can we get that incredibly sadistic, dense, idiotic prince of ours to realize that?"

"What are you saying, Hanako, we're just maids. How can we ever contradict or persuade royals?"

"I think you're wrong there, Oryou. I agree that it is not befitting of our standing to change the minds of royals directly, but we can do a lot indirectly. For one, we can start an event or gossip that makes the prince wake up to his feelings."

"Start a gossip? What do you mean by that, Tama san?"

Tama smiled a little, her red eyes twinkling with mischief, before saying," Ah, for that all of us need to be really confidential. It might be troublesome if the prince came to know about it…"

At that, everyone's eyes sparked with excitement, and they all nodded with wide smiles. Putting aside all their work, they gathered around Tama, who was generally the most resourceful of them.

"The marriage between Kagura sama and Sougo sama was practically a forced one, which is also why this situation is so tangled up. But it is also something that can work to our advantage. My plan is that we spread rumors about Kagura sama being courted by another prince. If Sougo sama comes to know of it, which he definitely will, he'll go into a flying rage of jealousy. And the first thing he'll do is to go to Rakuyou. After that, I am not too sure, but I hope they both will have realized their feelings for each other and it is likely that he will bring our princess back."

"But, won't that create misunderstanding between them? He might just hurt Hime sama more with his words if he thinks so."

"But, we don't have to tell him that she likes him at all! If we just tell the prince that another guy is trying to hit on Kagura sama, then it'll do the trick immediately. Besides, all is fair in love and war!"

The plan finalized, the women then began to discuss how to implement it as quickly and efficiently as possible.

* * *

The next morning, at the Edo palace, Hijikata was most displeased to find that Sougo was still sleeping, even though it was well past ten 'o' clock. His mood worsened even further when he saw Sasaki entering the throne room, his dead fish eyes looking as disinterested as ever.

"Oi, what are you doing here? I'm really not in a good mood now, so get lost before I slice you."

"My, my, is that how you treat an elite prince? Hijikata san, your behavior is more suited to a rough commoner than a Knight of honor. Besides, where is the prince? I've just heard some rather, ah, _intriguing_ rumors…"

"Tch, the prince is still in dreamland. Now, will you deign to tell us ' _commoners_ ' what rumors you've been hearing _, o most_ _elite and insufferable Prince of the Mimawarigumi?"_ The tension in the air was so thick by then that it could practically be sliced like a cake and tasted.

"Oh really, it's not too important. Only that the princess of Edo is being courted by an unnamed man. But that hardly seems significant to clumsy commoners, does it?"

Hijikata simply rolled his eyes at the last remark, even smirking a little. Quietly, he said," Nope, ain't worried at all. That China girl would just kick the hell out of anyone foolish enough to hit on a married woman."

Sasaki raised his eyebrows and murmured, "Well, maybe she would. However, you don't seem to be concerned at all, unlike many of your subordinates."

"There's nothing to be concerned about. And now, will you please get lost? I don't feel like seeing your annoying face for one more second!"

Unknown to both of them, a certain prince had caught the first part of their conversation and was now emitting a highly murderous, sadistic aura.

* * *

That day, everyone made sure to stay at least a mile distant from the prince, who looked to be in an extremely bad mood. However, for some reason, the maids seemed quite satisfied with his behavior, even giggling as they watched him pass by.

Sougo ignored them; Sasaki's words were all he could think about. " _Oh really, it's not too important. Only that the princess of Edo is being courted by an unnamed man. But that hardly seems significant to clumsy commoners, does it?"_

 _Not too important? What the hell? This is the very damned opposite of that! How can China be courted by someone? She is married to me! Just how disgusting can you get, trying to hit on a married brat like that… And why am I so annoyed at this? Somehow, it's just like that time when that blasted Hijikata took Aneue away from me… But why should I feel this way about a gluttonous, rude, China brat? It's not like she's anyone significant to me…_

"Hmph."

Sougo looked up in surprise, seeing Sadaharu next to him, his lips curved in disbelief. He realized, feeling a little surprised, that he had actually been speaking out loud. Well, it was only a dog that had heard him, so there was no possibility of him being embarrassed.

"Don't act as if you understand me, mutt. Now just go away before I take out my irritation on you."

"Wan."

"Seems like you have no intention of going; you're just as stubborn as your stupid mistress. She'd probably be trying to kill me if she was here…"

"Waaann."

"Are you saying that you miss her? Stupid dog, like she cares for us anyway. Huh? Did I say 'us'? I really must be going nuts now… Well, maybe she doesn't have much reason to care for me, and she might be perfectly justified if she chooses to go out with someone else. After all, I was the one who told her that our marriage was only a charade for a title. There ain't much reason for her to think much of it either."

"Arf."

"Don't you dare misunderstand me, dog. I'm _not_ in the least jealous, only sorry for the guy."

" _Wan?_ Hmph."

"So you say I'm lying? As a dog, you sure have some audacity… China is free to do as she likes. I'm also free to do the same. She is _my_ rival and _no one else_ is getting an inch close to her, not even over my dead body. And since I just realized that I like her crazy antics, she's going to have to be _my_ play toy for eternity now."

"ARF!"

Hijikata looked up from the ongoing training session when Sougo walked in, carrying his beloved bazooka. The other Shinsengumi officers momentarily stopped, they were just too curious as to what their prince was going to announce next.

"Hijikata san, prepare for assassination, because I've just decided I'll be killing you on the way to Rakuyou."

* * *

Kagura sighed tiredly as she rubbed her eyes; it had really been an exhausting day. The affairs of the kingdom had degenerated into a total mess, with innumerable complaints about destruction of life and property by overzealous Yato fighters and extortion by pirate gangs. But she hadn't complained too much about it, for it had prevented her from thinking too much about Edo, Sadaharu and particularly a red eyed Sadist. She just wanted to forget about all of it, as she assumed they would forget about her, but she couldn't. And as much as she wanted to deny it, to Tsukky, Anego, and herself, she really did miss her life back there. Now that she had the leisure to consider it, there were so many things that she wanted to do, from beating up her 'husband', to playing with her dog, ordering the Shinsengumi around, having an argument over nothing with the Sadist, blowing him and Mayora up with a bazooka, eating Tama's delicious egg and rice….

 _Huh? Why the hell am I thinking so often about that jerk? He's definitely forgotten about me now, he might even prefer it if I never go back! So why do I miss him so much? Am I really turning into an idiot like he said I was? Again, I'm thinking about him! Damn you, curse you, you irritating, ugly, rude, sadist, why the hell must you make me feel so weird?!_

Furiously wiping away the moisture leaking from her eyes, Kagura buried her head in the fluffy cushions surrounding her, soon falling asleep, though not before wondering who was feeding Sadaharu.

 **A/N; So there ends the fourth chapter! I really should be studying instead of writing fanfics now, but I couldn't help it…. I hope you had as much fun reading this chapter as I had writing it! A huge thanks to everyone who read, reviewed, followed and favorited this story; your appreciation makes my day!**

 **Please do take the time to leave a review, your support never fails to keep me going! Feel free to send me suggestions, requests, anything you wish, I love to know what you think about it. Constructive criticism and suggestions for improvement are also greatly appreciated!**


	5. Chapter 5

**Chapter 5: It is Troublesome Having a Bald Dad!**

 **So here is the fifth chapter, hope you enjoy reading it. I'm adding the replies to the reviews here because I really don't have enough time to thank these awesome people personally.**

 **Akely: Thank you for your review! I apologize about the awkwardness of the dialogues; English isn't my first language and I often tend to get a little too flowery. I'll definitely try to improve and thanks again for correcting and encouraging me. Hope this chapter meets your expectations!**

 **Torarara: Thanks for your reviews! I'm so glad that you love this story. I'm not too sure yet if Gin and Shinpachi will figure much in this story, I'm sorry if I might have disappointed you. And it really surprised me to know that you liked the combination of coffee and mayonnaise! Though it fits Hijikata, lol.**

 **nathan19bane: Your review literally left me floating in the clouds! I still can't believe that I'd be an inspiration to anyone… Thank you for reading and reviewing and all the support. I hope you like this chapter too.**

 **Now, onto the story!**

* * *

A cloaked figure walked down the desolate streets of Rakuyou, holding an umbrella to shield himself from the rain. He soon reached the royal cemetery where a marble tombstone glimmered faintly, having been built quite recently. The man's cheeks were wet as he laid a bouquet of flowers on the grave. His last respects paid, he turned and headed straight towards the royal palace, his home.

* * *

Tae had been expecting a lot of people when she opened the vast doors of the palace, but she had definitely never considered the man standing in front of her.

"Umibozu sama?!"

It was truly the king of Rakuyou, completely bald as always, dressed in the attire of a hunter. He nodded at the retainer, before asking in a tone that betrayed his urgency, "Where is my daughter?"

"Kagura chan… She's in the throne room, but-'Tae had barely finished when Umibozu strode past her, moving briskly towards the said room. Tae suddenly started when she remembered that Umibozu probably knew nothing about his daughter's recent marriage. Wincing in anticipation of the disaster that was in the making, she hurried away to inform Tsukuyo and Sarutobi.

Kagura looked up at the fall of footsteps, wondering who had come. Adjusting her crown, she hoped that whoever it was would not notice that she had just been gorging on sukonbu a few moments earlier. But all such anxieties vanished the moment she saw her bald dad. And naturally, her first reaction was to stare at him in amazement and disbelief.

"Kagura chan! How are you, my dear?"

All of a sudden, a huge wave of resentment burst within her. The man standing before her hadn't even come for his only daughter's wedding and had left her to deal with her Mami's death alone. And all he had to say after so many days was 'How are you'. _What does he bother about how I am? Does he even have any idea of how I've been all this while, yes? How I've had to take his responsibility even if I wasn't ready for it? Does he think that everything will be alright if he just shows up out of the blue occasionally like this?_

"Kagura, why are you wearing the queen's crown? **Don't tell me** -"

"I don't have anything to say to you, uh huh! You have no right to question me after everything that's happened!" Her eyes pricking, Kagura stormed out of the room, past Tsukuyo and Tae who were standing at the door. Her father stared after her in shock, before turning on her retainers.

" **Has my daughter gotten married while I've been gone?"**

Tsukuyo blew out a puff of smoke as she glared back at Umibozu, who was now radiating an extremely dark aura. "Yer asking tha' now? Ya left the moment tha funeral was over, an' it never bothered ya as ta what yer daughter had to go through then. So there ain't any use in getting into a rage now. Kagura is married, an' that ain't gonna be changing. So just accept it already, King."

" **And who is the bastard? I'm so going to decapitate him…"**

"King Umibozu, do you want the few remaining hairs on your head to die too? Besides, it is wrong to harass a married couple. "

"And how exactly did they become so?"

"Because ya weren't there, Rakuyou was in a mess and someone had ta rule it. An' Kagura was the only one who could do it, but she had ta get married fer that. She…. Agreed ta marry tha first prince who was ready. And now, she's married ta the prince of Edo."

"So why is my daughter here, if she is really married? No matter how much you all try to conceal it, I can tell that she is not happy! And there's no way she'll be happy with a marriage like that!"

"King, I request you, please, give it a chance. They will begin to like each other over time. In fact, I'm already quite sure that Kagura chan likes him too…"

" **Oh? Then that's more reason for me to break up this so called marriage**. If I have to see my daughter married, it will only be to a guy whom I approve of!"

Tae looked helplessly at Tsukuyo as Umibozu left to search for his daughter. The blond haired woman simply said, "Tae, if that baldy tries to separate Kagura from her 'sadist', I'm gonna knock him out."

"You'll have our complete support, Tsukuyo. Even though Kagura chan says that Sadist kun married her only for the namesake, for her to tell us so much about him, he must be someone really special to her."

"And that's exactly why we can't have them separated yet."

* * *

The next morning, the royal palace of Rakuyou witnessed a quarrel violent enough to bring the walls crashing down. Kagura had flown into an absolute fury when her father ordered her to break off her marriage and search for a better partner with him. Umibozu, on the other hand, was aggravated by his daughter's outright refusal. After all, he was only doing what was good for her, even if she couldn't realize it. So they were both fighting, with both words and weapons, trying to make each other agree to their own view.

"Kagura chan, you are too young to realize the devastating consequences this fake marriage will have on your future! Papi is only trying to save you!"

"Like hell I need you to save me, Baldy! Where were you when you were really needed, yes? And this isn't a fake marriage!"

"Kagura, you're blinded by your feelings for that bastard! He doesn't care about you at all. You do know that, deep down! That is why it is best for you to leave him and find a new life!"

"Who the hell said I have feelings for that jerk?! I hate the guy! But I don't want the solution you are trying to give me, because it can only make things worse, uh huh. Mami told me that marriages happen for a lifetime, even if your husband is a clueless idiot!"

"Kagura chan, you really cannot understand me. But I know that you'll regret it in the future and Papi won't be there for you then! So, even if I have to use force, I'll do it to save you!"

"I'm no longer a crybaby weakling like before, so I'll fight you if I have to, uh huh. What makes you think that everything will be alright if you mess with others' homes, yes?"

"Home? Kagura, we have no place we can truly feel at home at, except the battlefield. You think now that Edo or wherever is your home, but they all will have forgotten you in the few days you haven't been there. Maybe I will not force you to marry someone else just now, but I _will_ break off that pretend, forced marriage you seem to want to protect so much!"

Kagura gripped her umbrella harder, about to tear out what remaining hair follicles her bald idiot of a dad still possessed, when an extremely familiar voice stunned her into a statue.

" **My, my, just which** _ **pretend**_ **marriage were we going to 'break off' over here?"**

Standing in the doorway, a huge bazooka slung over his shoulder, was none other than Okita Sougo. He was emitting a particularly sadistic aura which sent an involuntary shiver through everyone in the huge room. Tae's smile suddenly got a hundred times sweeter, Sachan's eyes shone and Tsukuyo let a relaxed puff of smoke, smiling a little. Kagura stared at her husband in utter astonishment, not able to think of a single reason as to why the Sadist was here.

"Oi, China monster, you are really a tsundere aren't you? I never knew that you liked me so much that you wouldn't marry anyone else… I'll definitely be making you my play toy soon, little piggy."

Yep, that had to be it. The jerk had only come over to insult her and force her to lose her temper. There couldn't be any other reason, and to her, this seemed like the neatest explanation. But for some reason, she wasn't bothered about it, the fact that he had turned up was enough to make her weirdly happy and warm inside. However, there was no way she was going to let his insult go, just like that, without crushing his deadpan face.

"Just who are you calling a pig, you double damned sadist?! I'll send you to hell for that insult!"

"Then I'm not going to go to hell anytime soon, because there's no way I'll listen to anything you say. You seem to have become quite a few times uglier in a few days, China. Upset to hear a few hard truths, aren't you?"

"You are in no position to talk, with that stupid, deadpan face of yours! You're the ugliest of all, both inside and out, yes!"

"You just broke my heart, China. I really wonder which fool was blind enough to hit on you…"

"What the hell are you talking about? Though forget it, because I'm going to make _you_ blind now!"

Watching the two of them fight, Hijikata took a deep draw of his cigarette before glancing over at Umibozu, who was staring at the brawl with rapidly increasing disbelief.

" _ **Is this what you maids call 'love', Otae?!"**_

"It doesn't seem so, but nevertheless, that's what those two devils call 'love'. Fighting is just their way of expressing their feelings. You could even say that they are flirting with each other, for goodness' sake."

Umibozu glared at Hijikata who had offered those words, growling, " And you ask me to believe Kagura is happy with this? That this is what you all term a marriage?"

"Oh for heaven's sake, just look at their eyes. I haven't seen Sougo this fired up for ages, not even while trying to kill me. Your daughter also looks like she's having fun. So, baldy, why don't you give it a chance?"

"Who are you calling 'Baldy', nicotine addict?!"

Meanwhile, moving back to the ongoing brawl….

"Stop dodging like a monkey and stand still, Sadist! I want to get a clear shot at you!"

"Which planet did you leave your brains in, China? Even a pig isn't so dumb. Heck, even a dog is smarter than you."

"JUST SHUT UP! Now, tell me why the hell you even bothered to come here, yes? Hurry up or I'll break your hand."

"I'll slice you up before that. And if you're so eager to know, it was only because your dog threw a tantrum and refused to behave as he missed you."

"Sadaharu? He missed me? Then… at least someone remembered me!"

"What the hell are you celebrating about? In the first place, no one even forgot you, China brat. Seriously, what kind of environment were you brought up in?"

"No one forgot about me? That means, you too? Don't tell me, you actually missed me, you tsundere sadist! "

"In your wildest dreams, China. As if anyone would. It was a relief to be rid of your insanity for a few days." _I really missed you, insanity and all. But I swear I'll only admit it the day hell freezes over._

"Well, I was also _really_ happy not hearing your insults and having to see your unbearable face every single damned moment, uh huh. I wish you'd just get lost, jerk." _I wanted to see your face every single second, uh huh. But you'll hear me say it only when Papi's hair follicles grow back._

Too tired to fight any more, they both sat down on the ground, only to be knocked over by Sadaharu, who was delighted to see his mistress again. Watching the scene, Umibozu grudgingly decided that maybe, just _maybe,_ he wouldn't break off the relationship _yet_. Though he _would_ kill the sandy haired prince if he ever saw his daughter cry.

* * *

 **A/N: So there ends the fifth chapter! I hope you enjoyed reading it! Thanks a lot for reading this story! Please do take the time to leave a review, your support never fails to keep me going! Feel free to send me suggestions, requests, anything you wish, I love to know what you think about it. Constructive criticism and suggestions for improvement are also greatly appreciated!**


	6. Chapter 6

**Chapter 6: It's Always Good To Be Back Home**

 **Here are the replies to the reviews for the last chapter. Thank you all for reviewing, I'm really, really grateful to all of you.**

 **Miku Walker: I'm glad you found the story funny and interesting! And my first language is Bengali, it's a language spoken in east India. No problem if you haven't heard about it though… Thank you for waiting for this chapter; I hope you like it!**

 **nathan19bane: Thank you for reading and reviewing! I'm also really interested in the story you're writing, I'll definitely read it! And I wish you all the best of luck with it!**

 **Akely: Thank you so much for that incredibly detailed review! I found your advice really valuable, and I'll definitely work hard to tailor the dialogues to reflect the characters. You've always encouraged me and helped me improve and I'm really grateful to you for it. I hope you like this chapter!**

 **Kimchimustard: Thank you for reviewing! I'm glad I could cheer you up, though I personally think that everyone will be just alright! I'm happy to hear that you find them in character. It would be pretty interesting to include Gin san and Shinpachi in this, though I'm not too sure if I can work that out, because I mostly write on the spur of the moment… I really do have to correct myself…**

 **Anyway, now on to the story!**

* * *

A few days later, the corridors of the Rakuyou palace were empty and lifeless, for all the residents had gone out to bid farewell to their princess, who was leaving with her husband and his company. Even though they would miss their princess, they could hardly feel too upset as they watched her argue rather violently with her husband, her blue eyes sparking. They had a feeling that she was going to be just fine, a feeling that was not shared by their bald ruler. He had been quite upset when his daughter had declared that she would not stay any longer as his nagging was getting unbearable. However, he still sent them off with astonishingly good cheer, which was mostly due to Tae, Sarutobi and Tsukuyo standing just behind him, armed with their favorite weapons and their sweetest smiles.

Seated in the carriage, Sougo still felt uneasy. Sure, he had been successful in bringing back his wif- no, rival, but a question still kept bothering him. Who _was_ the guy who had been hitting on Kagura? Every time he had asked her, she would stare at him as if she hadn't the least idea of what he was talking about and their conversation would invariably end in an argument or brawl. He was really having a tough time knowing what to think; was China lying to him or did she truly know nothing about it at all? He doubted that she could ever say a lie to save her life, and yet, he could not be sure that the rumor was false. Knowing Sasaki, his sources were usually elite and impeccable.

Even though he knew it would be futile, he decided to ask again, "Oi, China? Who was the blind guy who liked you? It would be interesting to do a study on him; he must truly be nuts."

"Why the hell are you always asking that question, yes? And what do you mean that no one will like me, yes? I'm the prettiest in this universe, because I have Mami's model genes, uh huh!"

"Please, and I'm a cabbage. What makes you think you're so pretty? And why don't you give an answer to a question for once instead of asking another?"

"I'm telling you there's no one like that! Wait, though, you're jealous? Sadist, you're jealous, yes?! You're no different from a tsundere high school student! Now admit you've fallen for the Queen of Edo!"

"Like hell I'm jealous, China. Stop grinning at me with that ridiculous troll face; it makes me want to puke. You're the only one crazy enough to think that I like you. Or maybe it's because you like me and you don't want to admit it yourself?"

"Who'd like you, Sadist?! I hate you!"

Meanwhile, in the adjacent carriage, Yamazaki looked nervously at Hijikata, wondering whether it would be alright to tell the smoker what he had just heard. On one hand, he might just get killed for it, but someone needed to enlighten the prince, and he definitely did not want to do it. Taking a deep breath, he decided to go ahead, his police man instincts favoring the revelation of truth.

"Um, Hijikata san, I've heard something from the maids... It is actually a little important..."

"What is it, Yamazaki? Hurry up and spill it already. Though it better not be any stupid nonsense, or you are going to have to commit seppuku. "

"Ah… Well, the maids in Rakuyou asked me the specific reason why we had come all of a sudden, and I told them that the prince had heard that someone was hitting on the China princess. But he wouldn't admit that he was jealous and that's why he made up excuses about the dog and everything. The maids told me that there was no such person! But they soon began giggling and wouldn't explain what they meant…"

"No such person, eh? Well, why do you sound so surprised? It seems pretty obvious now, doesn't it?"

"What do you mean, Vice-Chief?"

"Yamazaki, haven't I told you never to believe the gossip that women indulge in. It was obvious from the start that there ain't any such person, and anyway I don't at all believe that the China girl can do something like that. My best guess is that someone spread the rumors with the intention of making Sougo jealous and thus compelling him to overcome that huge ego of his and go to get her back. And if there was such a person, the very fact that none of her retainers know anything about it would be proof enough that he doesn't exist."

"But shouldn't we tell that to the prince? He and the China princess have been arguing over it for days…"

"You go tell him, Zaki. I'm not interested in getting killed again."

"But I'll be killed if I do that!"

" **You do know that violation of orders means seppuku, right?"**

* * *

The next morning, Sougo awoke to the sound of loud laughter, barks, crashes and even blasts. Not feeling in the least perturbed, he turned over and fell asleep again. It sure was relaxing to find everything as usual at home.

Downstairs, Kagura was playing with Sadaharu, even as the maids struggled to cook the huge breakfast their mistress would soon eat, in time. Hijikata got blasted away when he decided to offer the dog mayonnaise, with Yamazaki becoming Sadaharu's new chew toy. Kagura laughed merrily as she fooled around; it was great to be home.

* * *

When Sougo woke up at noon that day, after Hijikata had yelled his lungs out, he was quite dismayed to find that a mountain of paperwork awaited him. As he wondered whether he could make Yamazaki do it for him, he saw the very same plain policeman heading nervously towards him.

"Prince Okita, there's something a little important I've to tell you… Um, please don't kill me after hearing it…"

"I'll kill you if you don't tell me, Zaki. But it had better be something other than affairs of the kingdom and boring crap like that."

"It's not about the kingdom, prince. It's just that the rumors about a man courting the China princess weren't true at all… What I meant is that there is no such guy. We were mistaken."

"Yamazaki, does anyone else know about this?"

"Ah,…no, no one but me does, really, Okita sama."

"Good. Make sure that no one else gets to know of this matter, especially not that China brat. And I order you to find out who spread such false rumors; I'll make sure they find the worst path to hell. Also, complete all that paperwork within today, or I'll send _you_ to the afterworld." The extremely sadistic grin plastered on the prince's face sent a chill down Yamazaki's back. The plain person felt that no matter what he did, death would always be looming over him, as long as he stayed with such 'unique' personalities.

* * *

Meanwhile, somewhere in a dark niche of Edo...

Crimson blood spattered the walls of the dark alleyway. A mutilated body fell to the ground with a sickening thud. At least three more corpses lay beside it, all in similar states. The murderer carelessly wiped his bloody hands, a wild, beastly grin spread over his face.

"This is boring…."

 **A/N: So there ends the sixth chapter! I wonder who the bloody butcher is... Even though it might be a little obvious already…. Anyway sorry for such a short and late update, exams have occupying all my thoughts these few days. But the next chapter will definitely be a lot more interesting; at least, I hope so!**

 **Thanks a lot for reading this story! Please do take the time to leave a review, your support never fails to keep me going! Feel free to send me suggestions, requests, anything you wish, I love to know what you think about it. Constructive criticism and suggestions for improvement are also greatly appreciated!**


	7. Chapter 7

**Chapter 7: You Hardly Ever Get All That You Wish For.**

 **Putxi: Thank you so much for your kind review! I'm really happy that you find this story interesting! And yup, you are totally right, it's Kamui himself. I really hope this chapter was worth the wait, enjoy reading!**

 **Akely: Thank you so much for the review and the best wishes! Don't worry, it's never a burden updating for me, partly because of all your supportive reviews! And, needless to say, you guessed right; it's Kamui. I agree the guy is really more like a slum's serial killer than a prince. We'll be seeing his motives only in the next chapter, though. And I too am twenty thousand leagues away from being a pro in writing; your encouragement means a lot to me. I hope this chapter meets your expectations!**

 **Guest: You're truly welcome and thank you so much for reading this story! I'm very pleased to hear that you love it, and I hope this chapter makes you happy too! Please have fun reading!**

 **And now, moving on to the story….**

* * *

The next morning, Sougo was awakened as usual by the Shinsengumi members making an insane amount of noise outside his door or wherever. But what was unusual was that he didn't attempt to kill or blast away any of them. One look at their pale, haggard faces told Sougo that something was seriously wrong, and that he had to deal with it soon, whether he liked it or not.

A few minutes later, everyone was assembled at the Shinsengumi headquarters and Hijikata issued strict orders that no one else be allowed inside, the penalty being seppuku. Sougo watched restlessly as Yamazaki fiddled around with a few pictures, wondering what the hell had got everyone so shocked and grim. He soon understood when he saw the pictures.

It was not that Sougo had never seen blood and gore. In fact, it was just as familiar to him as skipping paperwork was. But even he involuntarily took in a sharp breath at the sight captured hazily on paper. Human bodies lay, horribly severed and bloody, the walls of the alleyway splashed with huge, dark stains. Pushing the picture away, he looked up and asked in an expressionless voice, "Who the hell did this?"

It was Hijikata who answered, apparently forgetful of his unlit cigarette, "No clues on that yet. It's just been discovered this morning. The victims are all quite distinguished officials. They've all fought in wars previously, so that means whoever could do this to them must be a skilled fighter in the least."

"Not to mention that there have been almost no signs of an even battle. I fear we're dealing with a crazed, bloodthirsty killer here, this guy's no ordinary criminal."

Sougo simply nodded as he listened to Matsudaira explain, before issuing a short order, "Do whatever it takes to find him before he kills again. On no account will you get yourselves killed and I'll be taking a rather _active_ part in this."

Everyone saluted, their eyes resolved. Sougo lazily waved his hand to dismiss them before letting a devilish smirk creep over his face. _Ah, it's been so long since I've truly taken a mission… And it seems pretty exciting as well. Mr. Psycho Criminal, you just signed your death warrant, at the hands of the prince of the planet of sadists._

* * *

The morning was as cheerful as ever for Kagura, who ate and fooled around as much as she always did. The only indication that something was slightly different was that the Sadist got up pretty early and marched off the Shinsengumi HQ without a word and that Mayora had ordered that no one else leave the palace. Not that Kagura was too bothered to listen to it. She had no intention of staying cooped up inside the palace on a warm, perfect day, and she could take care of herself if a need to do so arose. This was why she secretly covered herself in a dark cloak and slipped outside through a tiny door leading to the gardens, which no one ever used. She chose not to take her umbrella, for the sun no longer bothered her as much as before and was rather mild today. Pleased at her successful escape, Kagura skipped happily through the surprisingly empty streets, not bothering to keep her face covered. She stopped dead in her tracks when she saw a huge crowd collecting near an alleyway, with Shinsengumi officers cordoning them off. Quickly pulling the hood over her face so that she would not be recognized, Kagura moved closer till she could see what everyone was so worked up about. The sight almost caused her to faint with horror. Her hands clenched into tight fists, trembling in rage and disgust. Looking at the bodies of the dead, covered in white sheets that couldn't mask the mutilation inflicted on them, Kagura felt colder than she had ever felt before. Not wanting to stay there a single second more, she fled straight back to the palace and slipped inside by the same way she had exited through.

Hugging her knees to control herself, even as the dreadful visions flashed over her eyes, she thought. _That's was so horrible, so beastly, who could do something like that? Aren't those people my subjects in a way? What sort of a princess am I, if I can let something like this happen in Edo? It was already sad enough in Rakuyou, why is something as terrible as this being seen in Edo?! Who could have done something so bad, yes?_ Tears ran down her cheeks as she tried to forget what she had just seen. Suddenly, she stiffened as she heard people walking past the cupboard she was sitting in, talking in hushed voices. Nevertheless, Kagura could hear them when they raised their voices, certain that no one was eavesdropping.

"Kondou san, there's something else about those murders that Zaki told me. It would be better if Sougo didn't know anything about it, so I hid it, but you have to know…"

 _Oh, it's just Mayora. They must be talking about that horrible incident, uh huh. Looks like he's speaking to that gorilla… I wonder if I should listen… It's most un-princess-like, but since when did I bother about all that? Besides, the Sadist won't tell me anything…. Wait, what was that?_

"As I was saying, Kondou san, Zaki found these at the murder scene."

"Hair? But they are the same color as that of the princess… What are you trying to say, Toshi?!"

"Simply that there's a chance that the China princess may have something to do with this. This might as well be her hair, or it could be a relative's. Either way, we need to investigate her."

"Toshi, how can you say that?! There's no way someone like China san would be involved in such a terrible deed! Even if she's a good fighter…"

"You're far too naïve, Kondou san. You even believed Itou when he came, damn it! What proof do we have that she's innocent? I don't want to believe it myself, and it's quite likely she has no knowledge of it, but we need to hunt up every last clue over here. There's no way I'll let this murderer get away."

Kondou protested again, but Kagura could no longer hear him. They slowly walked away, but she barely noticed the fact, her mind throbbing with what she had just heard.

 _ **They found my hair there?**_ _But I only went there in the morning, long after those idiots did their investigation, yes! But how… wait, what was it that Mayora said? A relative… But that can only mean_ _ **Baka niichan**_ _! Wait, it makes too much sense now; only he would do something as cruel as that and we do look similar! Then Mayora really is right, this is_ _ **my**_ _entire fault; if only I hadn't been so weak, if_ _ **only**_ _I could have stopped that jerk from leaving and becoming a killer… I'm so sorry, Mami, everyone…_

* * *

A few hours later, it was lunchtime and everyone gathered in the huge hall. Sougo came as bored as ever, half expecting all the food to have already been eaten by Kagura. Instead, he saw her sitting quietly at the table, a full plate still in front of her, looking even paler than she usually was. She ate her food absentmindedly and refused a second helping from Tama, saying that she was not hungry. Sougo promptly decided that apocalypse was not as far away as most predicted.

Looking at her more carefully, he noticed that she had been crying. Her blue eyes were slightly red shot and puffy, though it would be unnoticeable to most. Just as he could ask what was wrong, Hijikata and Kondou entered, seeming tensed and ….suspicious. Kagura looked up as they came, before bowing her head and poking at her food again. She looked quite upset, and Sougo felt an urgent need to find out why.

 _Huh? China seems to be getting more upset when Hijikata san looks at her. Kondou san looks guilty too…. Does the reason why she's so weird today have anything to do with them? I'll decide how to kill Hijikata san after I find out what he's done…_ _ **it better not be anything perverted.**_ _Speaking of weird, I haven't heard her laugh at all today… I wonder if she knows of what has happened. If she does, that's probably the reason, but how could she? Hell, this is one messed up day…_

Kagura meanwhile, was far too absorbed in her own thoughts to realize that Hijikata and Kondou were getting more suspicious of her as the moments passed by. She hadn't even considered if her behavior would make the people around her around her all jump to different conclusions, but she was truly feeling so shocked and guilty at the moment that she couldn't have behaved like her usual self even if she had known. After the meal was over, she immediately ran off to the palace gardens, not even bothering to reply to the Sadist's half hearted insult. Sougo then turned to look at Hijikata, an extremely innocent expression on his face.

"Hijikata san, do you happen to know why China is so upset today? I may not kill you if you tell me, you know."

"How the hell should I know, Sougo? She's probably upset over something trivial."

"I don't really think so, Hijikata san. Something 'trivial' would never cause a glutton like China to skip a whole meal and refuse a second helping of sukonbu topped ice-cream. Does she happen to know about the murders?"

"There's no way she can, because all the members of the Shinsengumi have been forbidden to tell her or the maids of this. Now go laze around as usual, Sougo and let us continue with our investigation." There was a steely coldness in Hijikata's voice, which no one in earshot missed. Sougo merely stared back, as deadpan as ever, before calmly getting up to walk out into the gardens.

"So you finally give me a chance to laze around, Hijibaka san. How nice of you. But it really won't be very nice if you don't allow me to take part in this. And if anyone other than me makes my wife/ rival cry, they can prepare for death."

Looking at his retreating back, Matsudaira sighed and glanced at Hijikata. "I see why you were so against telling him. But I feel that the princess' behavior warrants suspicion. "

"None of us want to believe that, Totsuan! It just can't be the China princess, she can never hurt someone like that; it's just not possible…"

"Kondou, you're far too trusting. She's a princess from a particularly bloodthirsty land and her people have the reputation of being the fiercest fighters in the continent. We know almost nothing about her history, to make it worse. I want this investigation to be a fair and ruthless one. If Sougo can't do that, then he doesn't need to do it at all. When you weigh the lives of countless countrymen and the life of one foreign queen, it is obvious which side of the scale sinks."

* * *

Kagura's thoughts were suddenly interrupted by a sarcastic, yet slightly worried voice, "Oi, China, what the hell are you doing out here? Don't you have any more insane ideas to undertake?"

"Sadist? What are you doing here? Go and discuss police work with Mayora and Gorilla, and stop bothering me, uh huh."

"Ain't gonna listen to you, so forget it. What happened to your black hole of a stomach today?"

"It's not a black hole! I just wasn't hungry today… did you come here just to insult me, yes?"

"Up for a spar, China? Or are you too scared of facing me? I say, you aren't depressed because you just realized my absolute superiority, are you?"

"JUST WHAT THE HELL WAS THAT?! Who said I was scared of you? I swear I'll knock the stuffing out of you and smash that intolerable face of yours!" _I_ _really will, Sadist. This may just be our last fight, so I'll make sure I beat you for once and for all. It's been real fun, after all, Sadist. Trust Baka niichan to ruin it though…_

Sougo grinned, almost maniacally, as they both charged at each other, pulling out their respective weapons. It relieved him beyond measure to see his China grin as usual and fight with him; at least she wasn't making that sad, half broken face that hurt him so much. It was a really weird way of consoling a girl and cheering her up, but it was indeed the best way for both of them. And he decided that he did love her a 'little' for that.

The fight seemed to go on for hours, only to end in a draw. Sougo shrugged, looking quite annoyed at not being able to beat his wife yet. Kagura cursed loudly, why couldn't God grant her wish and let her beat the Sadist for once? She might never see his face again, at least she could be granted the pleasure of seeing him kneel before her one last time. They soon began arguing again, stopping only when Tama firmly ordered Sadaharu to drag both of them inside for dinner.

* * *

The next morning, the castle doors swung open as the queen walked outside, dressed in a red cheongsam and armed with her beloved umbrella. No one knew of her departure, though they soon would. As Kagura sadly took a long look at her home, she realized all of a sudden that perhaps it was as well that their 'last' fight had ended in a draw.

 _Draw, huh? Don't worry sadist, I'll be back to kick your ass, real soon. This isn't goodbye; it's just a short mission till I return to all of you, yes? As Tama knows to feed you, I don't have to worry about you, Sadaharu. And idiot Sadist, you had better not do anything stupid while I'm gone, uh huh. It's bad enough having to deal with an idiot psycho older brother, without having to deal with you too._

* * *

The red haired man looked up from the enormous amount of food piled in front of him to see someone standing, glaring furiously at him. His trademark grin widened, as he called out, "Sister dear? It's such a surprise to see you here! My, my, whatever are you doing, pointing such a dangerous weapon at your elder brother like that? Is that how you greet me after so many years?"

"Baka niichan, you can stop that nonsense now. In the first place, I'm hardly here to greet you and I really had no intention of even seeing you, uh huh. I know that you were behind those bloody murders and you plan to commit more, yes?"

"So you're here to stop me, Sister dear? But I never even knew you lived here, why do you care so much about what happens to a few unknown, useless people? But what about Rakuyou?"

"What do you care, Kamui?! You didn't even come for Mami's funeral! And you wanted know why I care, yes? Because I have a home in Edo now, and you're not laying a finger on it."

"Really, sister dear, when will you learn that we Yato do not have 'homes'? The battlefield is our only place to go back to. Well, I wasn't really planning on killing a weakling like you, but at least it will be more interesting than chopping up aged lapdogs."

In less than a few minutes, everything within a five meter radius was reduced to rubble as the Yato siblings charged at each other, the brother grinning like a homicidal madman,( which he truly was ), and the sister's eyes burning with fury, resentment and also the slightest trace of sadness.

* * *

 **A/N: So there ends the seventh chapter! I hope you enjoyed reading it; I loved writing it too. I'll be updating soon enough, because writing really helps me relax while studying for exams. Weird, I guess. Thanks a lot for reading this story! Please do take the time to leave a review; your support never fails to keep me going! Feel free to send me suggestions, requests, anything you wish, I love to know what you think about it. Constructive criticism and suggestions for improvement are also greatly appreciated!**


	8. Chapter 8

**Chapter 8: Men Get Furious Easily, Especially when it Comes To Their Wives.**

 **Hellooo: Thank you for reviewing, I'm really happy that it interested you! I hope you like this chapter too, and I think your expectations might be met, no spoilers though! Thank you for the good luck, the exams are going pretty smoothly! Hope you like this chapter too!**

 **nathan19bane: Thank you for the review and the motivation! I'll definitely try my best to keep it up till the end, so please do continue to read and encourage me! Hope you find this chapter worth the wait!**

 **Putxi: I really felt bad for Kagura myself too while writing, but hopefully, happier times await her! And yep, Sougo is really in love with her by now. Thank you for reviewing and I hope you enjoy this chapter too!**

 **Akely: I'm really happy that the chapter interested you, though even I am not sure if it could really be called a twist, hee hee. And I totally agree that a few people are going to be in big trouble when Sougo gets mad… Thank you so much for the beautiful review, I hope this chapter meets your expectations too!**

 **Torarara: You're welcome and thank you too for reading! I hope you enjoy this chapter too, and I'm really grateful to you for leaving a review!**

 **Now, let's get back to the story!**

* * *

Silence was _not_ Sougo's cup of tea in the morning, at least not since a certain China doll had begun to stay in the castle. Absolute silence, like that which filled the entire building at the moment, was nearly always a sign of impending trouble. The last time it had been this quiet was when _she_ wasn't in the castle….

Sougo got up with a jerk. _Is China here in the castle right now? It should never be this peaceful in the morning…. Wait, why the hell am I so worried about something so vague? She probably overslept today, that's all. How she'd laugh at me if she knew what rubbish I was thinking just now…_ Smiling a little, he went back to sleep, but the uneasiness still remained, mixing in with his dreams.

Two hours later, when he finally woke up, Sougo was quite alarmed to find it almost as silent as before. Sure, he could hear faint voices from downstairs, a distant tapping of boots and a rather loud bark, but there was no trace of her usual laughter, or the sound of gunshots and crashing noises. He got ready as quick as he could and hurried downstairs, hoping that somehow, she would be there and he could annoy her for making him worry needlessly. But when he reached there, he could only see Kondou, Hijikata, Matsudaira and a few maids who were serving them breakfast. There was no sign of his China.

Trying to keep his face as deadpan as usual, he too sat down at the table, ignoring Hijikata's and Kondou's disbelieving stares. Well, he assumed that they were justified; he had woken up an hour earlier than he usually did, and that too without anyone yelling at him.

"Sougo, are you fine? Is something troubling you? Tell your parents and we'll do our best to help you!"

"I don't recall being this brat's parent, Kondou san! Sougo, you had better not be planning any new deviltry."

"In that case, do me a favor and just go and die Hijikata san. Then I won't have to make any further plans."

As soon as the meal was over, Sougo walked away into the gardens, his eyes the only indication of how troubled he was. Matsudaira spoke as soon as he had left, "So, doesn't he know that his wife isn't in the palace yet?"

"He doesn't know for sure yet, which is why he went to the gardens to search for her. He probably woke up only because he missed her. I never thought I'd see the devil himself fall in love…"

Matsudaira frowned at that and said, his voice filled with disapproval, "You sound like an old lady now, Toshi. Is that any way for a man to think? A real man should never be blinded by love or any other sentiment! Ah, there comes Sasaki."

The prince of the Mimawarigumi strode into the room, carrying a bunch of papers, looking as disinterested as ever, though his monocle glinted curiously. Hijikata glared at him, but he had no choice, for Edo and the Mimawarigumi were working together for once to catch the unknown psychopath.

"So, Sasaki, have you found out anything about the royal family of Rakuyou, with all your elite skills? Please enlighten us 'commoners' then will you?"

"As coarse as ever, aren't you, Hijikata san? And indeed, I've found out a few interesting details about your queen. The first, as all of you may know already, is that her father is known as the fiercest and best warrior of the continent. Her mother died very recently, but the lady is truly a mystery. It is not known where exactly she came from, and I admit that all my elite sources have failed to find that out. The China princess has almost no blood relatives, except a long lost older brother. It is likely that he is dead, for he has not been heard of for nearly ten years. In other words, the most likely possibility is that your queen herself is the psychopath murderer."

"Sasaki! You don't know what you're saying! I still will not believe that China san can do something like that!"

"We do not have much of an option, Kondou san. As much as I hate to admit it, the guy's right. And if she does happen to be innocent, why the hell has she run away from the castle? As of now, she's the main target of the investigation, and we will be proceeding as such."

" **Whom did you just call a psychopath, Hijikata san? Are you sure you haven't lost your head, accusing** _ **my**_ **China doll of murder? You're the reason why she's gone, aren't you?"** Sougo stood at the doorway, gripping his sword. His face was as deadpan as usual, perhaps even more so, but the lack of expressions frightened them more than any sadistic grin, furious yell or glare could have. Kondou exclaimed, sensing imminent death, "Sougo, you're misunderstanding! We never considered China san to be a murderer or anything like that!"

" **Is that so, Kondou san? Then what was it that I just heard about her becoming the main suspect of the investigation? Well, Hijikata san?"**

"I get that you're angry, Sougo, but try and face the facts. This case is connected to her, and-"Hijikata stopped as he felt the tip of a sword lightly touch his neck. To make it worse, it was drawn.

" **I don't want to hear a single word more about some stupid investigation you've done. I don't care if you find hair just like hers on the scene either. But what I do care about is that she isn't going to get hurt. You hurt Aneue enough, Hijikata san, don't you dare hurt my China too."** Sougo's eyes were burning, their hue too similar to blood.

"Sougo, take that sword away **immediately** , before I have to fire on you. If that girl does turn out to be the criminal, will you keep trying to protect her like this? Have you forgotten your duty as a prince?" Matsudaira's voice was a frightening rumble, but it hardly seemed to have any effect on Sougo.

" **Duty of a prince?** Totsuan, doesn't preventing an innocent citizen from being framed for what she would never do come under the duty of a prince? And if China is somehow guilty, then as her husband, it's **my** business to bother about it, not any of yours."

Sasaki sighed softly to himself. He had expected, being the elite he was, that the prince would never allow an investigation against his wife, no matter how much proof was placed before him. Well, all of it did sound ridiculous anyway. However, there was still a lot of work to do yet. He calmly drew a tranquillizing gun out of his inner pocket. After all, unconscious royals hardly interfered much with one's plans. But suddenly,

CHOMP! Everyone looked up at the unexpected crunch; Sadaharu had happily bitten down on Sasaki's head. Blood trickled down the Mimawarigumi prince's face as the gun fell to the floor. Sougo grinned a little at that, "Good dog, Sadaharu. It looks like we're going to have to retrieve your idiotic owner soon. So knock out this Mayora, Gorilla and Madao for me, will ya? Kill the Mayora if you like, I don't mind."

"WAN!"

* * *

Meanwhile, in another part of Edo, the worst sibling fight in history was going on, leaving nothing but destruction everywhere within a two mile radius. Kagura felt guilty about destroying so much of Edo, but she hardly had the leisure to consider others, given the situation she was in now. Kamui had truly gotten crazy strong within the last few years and it was taking all her effort to barely match him, without snapping the last chains of her sanity. No matter what, she wouldn't lose herself, because that would just mean that she was as terrible as her brother; she too was a total monster.

Grabbing her parasol, she rushed at him, jumping as he aimed a kick at her and bringing it down on his head. The impact pushed both of them away momentarily, before Kamui charged again, shooting wildly. One of the bullets ricocheted off her umbrella and to Kagura's horror, went straight towards a little girl who had just appeared out of the ruined buildings, crying blindly. She let her instincts take over as she rushed to push the idiotic, helpless child away from death. Almost instantaneously, a sharp pain shot through her, causing her to bend over in agony. The bullet had struck her, embedding itself in her side.

Kamui stopped, looking highly amused at his sister's condition. "Sister dear, how foolish have you become after all these years. What made you save a brat you never saw before, at the risk of your own life? You were never going to beat me, but I think I'll just finish you off now. You're really a disgrace to the name of the Yato clan, you know that?"

"I'd prefer being a disgrace to the name of my clan than to be a disgrace to my people. Try and kill me, Baka niichan, and you're going down too. We'll listen to Mami scold us together, yes?"

"My, my, I'd like it if you refrained from mentioning that person…. But it still intrigues me, how are these trash your people? You aren't the queen of Edo, after all."

"Sorry to surprise you, Baka niichan, but I _am_ the queen of Edo, because I accidentally got married to the jerk who calls himself the King. So all these people are mine and it's my duty to protect them, uh huh."

" **So you got married, Sister dear? Well, I guess I have another person to send to hell after I am done with you."**

"I'm afraid not, Baka niichan; you aren't going to lay a hand on the Sadist- Ahhh!" For Kamui had sprung forward, smashing his sister's head into the rocks. Smiling as widely as ever, he stepped on her hand and crushed the bone within seconds, causing her to scream louder than ever. Kagura felt every inch of her body explode in pain as she was thrown and beaten up like a helpless doll, her injury preventing her from attacking back. But hell, she so wasn't going to lose to her idiot brother like this, not because of some stupid injury!

Kamui's eyes widened in surprise as blood suddenly spurted out of his hand, for Kagura had dug her nails into it with all the strength she had. The moment he loosened his grip on her, she kicked him in the stomach, jumping away _. Seems like that crybaby did become a little stronger… But there's no way she can stand up to stop me any more, not after this!_ His eyes burning with a crazed light, he rushed towards the girl with inhuman speed, punching her with all his might, his fist devoid of any mercy. The girl choked, vomiting blood and fell down, shaking from the blow. Kamui smiled in satisfaction; she didn't get up again.

He looked around him in resignation; all hopes of him remaining incognito were gone now. He'd have to listen to Abuto's annoying lectures again…. Well, it still had been interesting. Ever since he had left Rakuyou, he had wandered through many countries, trying to get stronger, forget the people who would just be a burden to him and become the most idiotic psychopath pirate captain ever. He hadn't expected to meet his sister at Edo, nor learn that she was married. Well, the last part could be taken care of soon enough. Suddenly, he heard paws thudding a little distance away and the whole area was abruptly filled with killing intent, which surprised even him. Kamui smiled as he turned around, things just looked like they were going to get more fun.

* * *

Sougo could barely think straight. All he saw in front of him was China, _his_ China, lying still on the ground, almost, almost as if she was… _dead._ Her body was battered and bruised like hell and her pale skin was dyed red and brown with her blood. Her hands were bent at awkward angles, proof enough that they had been brutally broken. In fact, she looked no better than a broken, muddy doll. **And whoever hurt his only doll was going to pay for it with more than his life, more than every iota of his existence.** Even the deepest depths of hell would hardly be fitting for the bastard who had dared to lay a hand on _his beloved rival._

"Oh dear, you look quite upset, did that weakling mean much to you? I should probably say sorry, she won't be getting up for a very long time."

" **Be sorry that I won't send you to hell for what you did to China."**

Kamui's eyes widened in shock as Sougo lunged at him, his eyes emptier than pools of blood. He leaped backwards, feeling blood gush from his chest, even as his opponent slashed at him again. The two went at it wildly, their eyes and movements no longer human. Neither of them noticed a tear run down the fallen girl's cheek as her dog whined over her, licking her wounds.

 _You idiot sadist, why the hell did you come here? Don't you understand that I don't want to lose you too?_

* * *

 **A/N: So there ends the eighth chapter! I hope it was an exciting read; fight scenes are not my best skill, honestly. A huge thanks to everyone who read, liked and reviewed this story, you always make me keep grinning! Do take the time to leave a review; your support never fails to keep me going! Feel free to send me suggestions, requests, anything you wish, I love to know what you think about it. Constructive criticism and suggestions for improvement are also greatly appreciated!**


	9. Chapter 9

**Chapter 9: Sadistic Husband vs. Sadistic Brother**

 **Hellooo: Thank you so much for your review! I'm really delighted to hear that it excited you! I have a really wild imagination myself and I love to see what comes next in my mind too! I hope this chapter fulfills your expectations and that you enjoy reading it!**

 **nathan19bane: Thank you so much for your review! I was relieved to hear that my clumsiness at writing fight scenes didn't bother you. It really surprised and pleased me to know that you liked the line, even though I just typed it on a sudden spur of the moment. Hope you like this chapter too!**

 **Hirude: Thank you! I'm really happy that you find the story well written and the plot good, I'm always worried about whether it is good enough,** **. Thank you for the support and hope you like this chapter too!**

 **Akely: Thank you so much for that incredibly detailed and wonderful review! I'm really grateful to you for pointing out the error; I guess I should have thought of it before… I'll definitely be correcting it! I'm happy that you found the chapter engaging, and I hope this chapter meets your expectations! And thanks once again for all your support and reviews that help me improve!**

 **Putxi: Thank you so much for the review, it totally made me smile the whole day! I'm really happy that you find the story interesting and exciting! And you're truly welcome, and also, Thank you so, so much for reading and reviewing this story! You all totally make my day too!**

 **Now, onto the story!**

* * *

Kagura struggled to breathe evenly as she tried to use her broken hands to push herself up, though she collapsed again in almost no time at all. The pain that went arcing through her body when she put the least pressure on her hands was too much for her, even though they were just beginning to heal a little. But she had to, she had to get up, she had to stop the two utter idiots fighting to death in front of her. She wasn't going to lose her husband, and she had to knock some sense into her brother too!

As she had feared ever since the battle began, the fighters weren't matched evenly. The sadist was the best swordsman she had seen, but Kamui was different, he was a _Yato_. No human could hope to match up to a clan that lived for killing, no matter how skilled they were. But still… were her eyes deceiving her or was Baka niichan actually getting pushed back by Sougo? The look in his eyes was scaring even her… _Is the Sadist that angry, because of me? Why is he pushing himself so far for a near stranger like me? You idiot, please stop, please…_

* * *

Kamui felt truly excited by now. It had been such a long time since someone had truly injured him… Even better, that someone was a complete killer like him. However, a puny human could only go so far before… His eyes suddenly widened in shock as Sougo gripped his parasol barehanded, ignoring the blood dripping from his side and plunged his sword in with all the force he had. The sword snapped with the impact, while the parasol dropped to the ground. Both men stopped for the first time since they had started, weaponless and panting for breath.

"Human, how about you give up now? Go on like this and you'll just be dying, all for one brat who wasn't strong enough to survive. Is it really worth all that?"

"You wouldn't get it and you don't need to. I know you're just buying time to heal those wounds." The moment the words left Sougo's mouth, there was but a shadow standing at the spot as the person was already behind his enemy, gripping the broken hilt of his sword. Blood dripped down Kamui's shoulder, even as he sent Sougo crashing into the walls with force enough to crack the walls themselves.

Sougo bit his tongue to prevent himself from screaming as he hit the ground, but his entire body felt like it was on fire. Out of the corner of his eye, he saw Kagura, her shaking limbs and ragged breathing the only sign she was alive. Still, a vast relief coursed through him; at least she would live. About himself, he wasn't too sure, but there was no way he was going anywhere without taking down the bastard who hurt his girl.

Mustering all his remaining strength, he grabbed a pointed rock near his feet and rushed at Kamui, ignoring the agony welling up in his body. The red head was hardly prepared for such an unexpected attack and could only respond a few seconds late. That was enough for Sougo to stab the rock straight through his chest, just before he was slammed into the ground again.

The two fighters were matched quite evenly by then. Both of them were covered in blood, weakened by numerous injuries and broken bones. Kamui, for one, could hardly believe that he had been beaten up by an insignificant, weak human, while Sougo silently damned all human physical limitations that were slowly overcoming him. Even as his mind roared for revenge, his body could barely move anymore. A feeling of irritation rose within him as he watched Kamui raise his fist for one final strike. He had no energy to dodge it, forget blocking it. It was probably going to be his last memory on earth, and damn it, he hadn't even beaten China yet! Not to mention that he would not be there to protect her if something happened again… Well, he thought, as Kamui flew towards him, grinning wildly, it was now or never. If he was going to hell, then he wouldn't be alone in the trip. He wondered whether she would be too upset, but he hoped that she wouldn't cry. That'd really mess him up…

But the blow never came. As he looked up in astonishment, he saw that Kagura had somehow managed to grip Kamui from behind, despite her injured arms. Her lips were trembling with pain, but she tried to grin as she caught his eyes.

"Sadist, don't you have something to do, yes?"

Kamui's eyes burnt as he attempted to throw off his sister, but all of a sudden, the rage went out of them, only to be replaced with pure disbelief; Sougo had used the pointed fragment of a broken parasol to stab him in the stomach. Blood gushed out as the red haired man finally dropped his fist and collapsed onto the ground, eyes filled with surprise before they closed as usual.

The moment Kamui fell, Kagura let go of him, dropping down to the ground herself in pain. Sougo sat down beside her and they leaned against each other, surrounded by the remnants of what was once a bustling city area. Gazing at the rubble, Sougo coughed out, even though speaking was painful for him, "Look at what you've done, China. Forget murder cases, Hijikata san will arrest you for damaging public property."

"Most of it was _your_ fault! Why the hell did you even go and fight with that idiot brother of mine, you stupid Sadist?! I never asked you to do it!"

"I'd never do it if you _asked_ me too, piggy. And didn't you too go and fight with the same psycho idiot?"

"That's because it's _my_ responsibility as Mami's daughter to knock some sense into him, not yours!"

"And it is my responsibility as your owner to stop you from getting killed by your own idiocy. Really, China, did you have any damned idea of what you were doing?!"

"You're no one to say that, yes?! You could have seriously got killed, uh huh! And how could you bring Sadaharu here too? Don't you have any idea of the danger you put my pet in?!"

"The mutt wanted to come because it was worried about you. It would have come by itself, even if I hadn't brought it along, China idiot. But I can't believe that you are more worried about the dog than about me."

"Of course I was freaking worried about you too, you dumb Sadist! You think I wanted to lose you too? Even if you are the worst, dumbest, ugliest Sadist in the world, you're still my um, rival and, and you can't die until I beat you!" _Why the hell was I going to say 'love' over there? I'm_ _ **so not**_ _doing a confession like a teenage girl!_

"So you admit that you were worried about me? How sweet, China. Just admit that you are totally in love with me already."

"Am not! You should be the one admitting it, you Chihuahua!"

Shaking his head at his China's obstinacy, Sougo leaned against her, trying to prevent himself from passing out. He heard her grumbling about how heavy and smelly he was, even as she adjusted their positions so that he could rest his head on her lap. The last words he heard before he fainted from exhaustion were, "Stupid sadist, making me worry so much. You're as bad as Baka niichan, uh huh. Why do I have to have such weird luck in men…"

* * *

When Sougo woke up, all he could see was white. As he looked more carefully, he found that he was in a white room. Everything, from the blankets to the walls and the floors was totally white.

 _Where the hell am I? Wait, isn't this a hospital room? What am I doing here? Yeah, right, I was fighting that insane psycho who looked like China…. Huh? Where's China? Just how long have I been staying here anyway?_ He tried to get up from bed, but was soon stopped by an excruciating pain in his chest.

"Sougo, quit moving if you don't want to get hurt anymore. There ain't any carriage that'll run away if you don't get up now." Hijikata stood at the doorway, smoking as usual, only his eyes revealing his concern.

"Hijikata san, I'm disappointed that you haven't died yet. And should you spreading those cancer fumes in a hospital? How long have I been here anyway?"

"A fortnight or so. Both of you were really beat up when we found you, though the China princess recovered within a few days. She's sleeping in her room now, so don't point that bazooka at me, devil brat."

"Sleeping? That's just like her…"

"Oh yeah? I'd reckon that she hasn't slept a second before this, always sitting by your bed and checking up on you. Hell, she even threatened one of the nurses for suggesting that she leave."

"That reminds me, Toshi, we haven't told her anything about how worried and anxious our kid was when he heard that she was missing! China san will be happy to hear of it!"

"Do not even think of telling China, Kondou san, or I might just have to tell the gorilla lady that you are obsessed with her."

"Embarrassed, are we, Sougo?"

"Hijikata san, don't say a word if you value your life. However, what happened to that psychopathic brother of China's?"

"His subordinate took him away while you and China were unconscious. We… couldn't reach in time to apprehend them." Bitter regret was evident in Hijikata's voice, even though Kondou consoled him, saying,"Don't sound so down, Toshi! After all, Sougo and China san did give the criminal a fitting beating. We'll definitely catch him and the criminal organization next time!"

Sougo was hardly consoled as well; the thought of Kamui roaming around free disturbed him immensely. What if China was attacked again? What if something really happened the next time? He'd sooner turn a masochist than think that Kamui would have learnt a lesson. But he pushed such thoughts away, slowly getting off the bed despite Hijikata's yelling and Kondou's protests; he needed to see his China. _Now_.

* * *

As Hijikata san had said, the girl was sleeping in her room. Sadaharu had curled up beside her and cocked an ear as Sougo entered quietly. The dog let out a small, pleased bark, before getting up to go and guard the entrance as his master and mistress enjoyed some time together. Sougo grinned at that; China's dog understood him as well as she did.

Turning his attention to Kagura, he was startled at how peaceful she looked; a complete contrast to her usual loud, rude and violent behavior. Her vermillion hair looked so soft that he slowly reached out his hand to play with it, slowly enough not to wake her up, for he hardly needed any more ribs broken. It wasn't long before he realized that even an earthquake wouldn't be waking her up any time soon. As he leaned towards her, he heard her murmur a few words incoherently. Frowning, he tried to decipher her mumbles, wondering whether she was dreaming about something.

"I want sukonbu…." _Typical. She was hungry, then._

"Sadaharu, don't chew garbage…" _So she was thinking of her dog._

"I need to see him… now…" _Who the hell is she talking about?_ _ **It had better not be any other guy than me…**_

"The sadist had better get well soon…." _She's… worried about me?_

"Why do I love that jerk? Get out of my dreams…." _What? I'm not dreaming, right? China just confessed to me? I-_ OUCH!

Kagura had punched him, still fast asleep, murmuring, "I want to crush his stupid face…" Sougo flew backwards, falling against the couch, several of his wounds reopening with the impact. _**Damn it, China, I'm so going to get back at you for this!**_

However, he decided that revenge could wait for a while. Opportunities like this hardly came often. So he pushed Kagura to the side, got into the bed himself and wrapped his arms around her, making sure to first lock her fists in a handcuff he always kept with him. Then, pulling her close, he fell into the most comfortable sleep he had had in a long, long time.

* * *

 **A/N: So there ends the ninth chapter! I hope you enjoyed reading it and that it lived up to your expectations. If it didn't, please send me your opinion and I promise I'll try to improve! I apologize for updating a little late; a really troublesome lazy bug bit me, ha ha. Please do take some time out to send a review; I really love to know what you think about it! Suggestions to improve, constructive criticism and corrections are all priceless.**

 **Thank you for reading!**


	10. Chapter 10

**Chapter 10: Wives Never Listen To Their Husbands!**

 **Lia: I'm very happy that you liked my story! It relieves me that you think the relation between Kagura and Sougo looks canon; I'm always scared of them becoming OOC. And, sorry, Kamui won't be turning up for a while, though he'll be back in good time. I'm glad you enjoyed the last chapter and I hope you enjoy this chapter as much too!**

 **nathan19bane: You're very much welcome and thank you so much for reading this too! I was really delighted to hear that you found it adorable! I hope you enjoy reading this light hearted chapter too!**

 **Hellooo: Thank you so, so much! It made me too really happy to read your review, and I'll definitely update regularly. Kamui will get better, don't worry, and some new people are going to turn up too! I'm glad you find the pace good, please enjoy!**

 **Putxi: Thank you so much for the review! I'm so happy that the Okikagu interactions pleased you; I was rather nervous about how the last part was, hee hee. As to where our favorite sadist keeps his handcuffs, I have a sort of headcanon that he keeps them in a secret pocket in his coat, though you can imagine it as you like!**

 **Thank you all for reviewing, and I hope you all enjoy this chapter! Now, onto the story!**

* * *

Kagura did not wish to get up at all, even though she could hear Tama calling for her. It was just too warm, too comfortable in bed, tucked inside a pair of strong arms, cuddled up with a warm, muscular body…..

 _WHAT THE HELL?_ Her eyes snapped open; Sougo's sleeping face being the first thing that she saw. Kagura immediately made a decision never to believe any doctor again; her heart had just stopped beating and she couldn't breathe, but nevertheless, she was alive. Her first instinct was to scream, but she hastily swallowed it, for she did _not_ want _anybody_ to see them in this position.

 _What the hell is the Sadist doing here? Wasn't he supposed to be in the infirmary, yes? Then how is he in my bed?! I swear, I'll kill him if he did something dirty with me…. Though he actually looks cute when he's sleeping, uh huh… WHAT DID I JUST THINK? Why, why did I fall for this jerk so badly? Huh? Did he just say something? I can't believe it; the idiot is dumb enough to talk in his sleep!_

Filled with curiosity, she moved closer to him, trying to catch the softly murmured words. Suddenly, she froze as he touched her chest, rubbing it a little.

"So flat…"

 _ **That is it.**_ _ **I don't care if he's injured or not, I'M GONNA KILL HIM!**_ And she really would have done so, if her hands weren't securely handcuffed. Kagura made a second resolution that day; the king of Edo was soon going to have a grave next to that of Sadaharu 28. Otherwise, she was going to give up her royal title and sukonbu forever.

* * *

Later that day, the maids nearly choked with shock when they saw their mistress come down, her hands fastened in cuffs and a fearsome aura floating around her. Everything from her clothes to her hair was completely messed up, as if she had been 'trapped' in bed for hours and had tossed and turned and kicked about desperately to get out, without using her hands. Well, Tama thought that the princess would have done just that. She wondered whether the prince would need to be sent to the intensive care unit once more.

"Tama, please take this stupid things off me **now**. I can't punish the Sadist for all his crimes if these fetter my hands, uh huh."

Tama smiled a little at that, life was never boring when the princess was around. She picked up the largest, sharpest knife she could find and asked Kagura to stretch out her hands and close her eyes. Ignoring Oryou screaming that she would really cut off the princess' hands, Tama brought down the knife with a slash, snapping the cuffs with a loud clang. Kagura sighed in relief as soon as it was over, though she nearly fainted when she glimpsed just what Tama had used to do it. Soon, everyone was smiling and laughing as Kagura too joined in helping the maids to make dinner, ignoring everyone's protests, though she ate many times more than she cooked.

* * *

That night, Sougo was truly surprised by the variety of dishes at dinner. For once, there were more than ten of his favorite dishes, though in small helpings, topped generously with Tabasco sauce and also a few burnt messes that did not seem edible. Kagura too seemed suspiciously happy, she had not tried to kill him, insult him or throw him out of the window even once. In fact, he hadn't even been murdered for what he had done before, though he _had_ been kicked ruthlessly out of the bed after a lot of struggle. Everyone at the table choked simultaneously when the princess personally served everyone, saying that she would eat after they had all finished. It wasn't long after he took a few bites of the food that Sougo realized why. Each item, even the mayonnaise and Tabasco, were heavily laced with laxatives.

Within seconds, all the men at the dinner table; Sougo, Hijikata, Kondou, Matsudaira, and a few other members of the Shinsengumi were racing to the toilets, their faces twisted with pain and gripping their stomachs. Tama sighed as Kagura burst out laughing in sadistic pleasure, though she was having fun too. Oryou and the others cleared up the tampered food, before bringing their mistress her dinner, which was completely free of any laxatives and had been prepared separately. Kagura immediately began to wipe all the dishes clean, saying between mouthfuls," Their faces were so funny, yes! This is a far better punishment for them than beating them up, uh huh! Serve them right for suspecting and harassing an innocent girl like me! Hahaha!"

Most of the maids sweat dropped at that, wondering whether their mistress could ever be called 'innocent'. Though they did agree that the men were all absolute idiots to ever think that their mistress was a criminal and that the prince should have taken more precautions before 'sleeping' with his wife.

* * *

The next morning, there was a huge uproar in the palace. This, of course, had pretty much become normal, but it was much louder today. The reason? Sougo had passed a royal decree stating that from that very moment, the mistress of the place would not undertake any more outdoor adventures, or even step out of the castle, without his express permission and then too, always accompanied by a Shinsengumi unit. And naturally, the mistress of the house was not at all willing to do so.

"Why the hell should I follow your orders, you sadist?! I'LL GO OUT AS I PLEASE!"

"I'm afraid that's not happening, China. Every time you go out, a new mess happens and half the city gets destroyed. This is in the interests of your citizens, so abide by it, piggy."

"THE HELL IT IS! You're just doing this for your own sadistic pleasure! And why the hell do I need _your permission_ to go out?! I'm not your damned toy!"

"My, my, how loud and rude you are, China piggy. And you're mistaken, because you are mine, and only my S&M play toy. And so, you are going to do as I say. Besides, I consider this as fitting revenge for last night."

"Served you right! I am not going to listen, no way in hell, you double damned extreme Sadist!"

"Fine, then I'll order the maids not to feed that giant dog of yours a morsel until you agree."

Kagura felt like smashing his face in, but she suddenly saw Tama nod slightly out of the corner of her eye. Even though she hated to let the jerk order her around, she trusted her friend or maid implicitly and grudgingly assented to the royal decree, leaving everyone highly surprised. But then, Sougo thought, she did love her dog more than most other living organisms.

* * *

Meanwhile, in Kagura's room,

"Tama, why did you tell me to listen to that sadist? Now I'll be stuck in the palace forever, I'll be bored to death, yes!"

"Kagura sama, I know. But constantly arguing with Sougo sama too will get boring soon. I do not advise you to listen to him, but Kagura sama, if you must disobey, you should do so in the most interesting manner!"

"What do you mean, Tama?"

Tama handed her a pamphlet, saying, "They are called the 'Yorozuya'. They will do anything you ask of them, even kidnapping you on request from the palace of Edo. I'm sure you'll find it fun, Kagura sama."

* * *

A day later, at a small office, the signboard outside declaring it as the 'Yorozuya', a guy with a natural silver perm lazed on the couch, reading comics meant for children half his age. He hardly looked up as a glasses wearing teenager burst in, holding an ornate envelope, looking highly excited.

"Don't make so much noise in the morning, Patsuan. Can't you see that I'm busy?"

"Of course you're not in the least busy, Gin-san! Reading Jump does not qualify as being busy! And how is it early morning; it's already ten 'o'clock!"

"Shaddap and let me concentrate! You are beginning to take your straight man duties way too seriously, Patsuan!"

"What?! Oh, forget it, there's no use… Anyway, what I was about to say was that we've finally received a request! And also, it seems that the client is quite well off, judging by the paper."

"Why didn't you say that before, Patsuan?! Hurry up and open the envelope!"

Sighing at his boss' idiocy, Shinpachi carefully slit open the envelope, pulling out the letter inside. Together, they both began to read it.

 _Dear Yorozuya,_

 _My friend tells me that you will take on any job, if you are paid satisfactorily. I'm a noble, pure lady who has been locked up and imprisoned in my home. My husband, an extreme sadist, is behind this cruel, vengeful deed and I wish so dearly, to be able to see the outside world just once more… Thus, I request you to rescue me from my cage and let me fly like a free bird, for just one lovely day. I shall be very much indebted to you. And of course, you shall be paid well, feel free to ask for whatever amount you desire; Vice commander of the Shinsengumi, Hijikata Toushirou shall pay you personally._

 _Yours sincerely,_

 _A sorrowful prisoner_

"Gin san, what is this? Did we just enter some Sunday soap opera? This client, just who is she? And how does she expect us to find her without an address?!"

"Shinpachi, life is an adventure; we must take it as such. As the Yorozuya, we cannot ignore a damsel in distress. Besides, the address is not required, all we have to do is to ask that Hijibaka. Now, after that bag of money! Let us squeeze Oogushi kun's salary out of him, Patsuan!"

"You're getting fired up for all the wrong reasons, Gin san! Wait for me!"

* * *

Gintoki and Shinpachi soon reached the area patrolled by the Shinsengumi Vice-Commander, the latter highly doubtful as to whether it would be of any use. The letter was definitely full of drama, but it had mentioned Hijikata san, and they could always say it was for a request. After all, that was what the police were for…

Gin spotted the money bag, no, the _Shinsengumi Vice-Commander_ , at the city square, bullying one of his subordinates to go and buy mayonnaise for him. Within seconds, the two were nearly head-to-head, Gin looking as uninterested as ever, as Hijikata looking more annoyed than ever.

"Oi, what are you doing here, Yorozuya? Unlike you, I have work to do and the last thing I need to see now is your face, so get out of my sight!"

"How rude, Oogushi kun. I, too, am not interested in sniffing your mayo breath, you know? Besides, all the work you do is stealing taxes from hardworking citizens."

"Since when have you paid taxes?! And who said you're hardworking?! Dammit, just quit irritating me, you dead eyed silver perm idiot!"

"Ah, Gin san, Hijikata san, please stop arguing… We are only here for some information… Do you happen to know of any noble lady who, er, has a very, um, 'sadistic' husband? I mean… someone you know, um, rather well? "

"Are you talking about the China princess, Danna, Shinpachi san?" It was Yamazaki who piped up before Hijikata could say anything.

"China princess? Whoever is that?"

"Just how much _Jump_ have you been reading recently, you fish eyed idiot? You seriously don't have any idea of who the China princess is?!"

"Danna, she's Prince Sougo's wife and also the princess of Rakuyou. Maybe she's the one you're looking for, since Okita san is a do-S and everyone in the Shinsengumi knows her well. Huh? Danna, why are you looking so pale?"

Yamazaki received no answer as Gin grabbed Shinpachi by the collar and dragged him away. Hijikata rolled his eyes, before turning to glare at the hapless plain officer.

"Oi, Zaki, what are you doing here? Aren't you supposed to keep an eye on the China princess? Do you really want her to escape and for Sougo to wreck half the city fighting with her? Just remember, if that happens, you're taking responsibility."

* * *

Meanwhile, in an alleyway,

"Gin san, what a surprise… Was that lady the freaking _queen_ of the country?!"

"Patsuan, then that means, we're supposed to….. FREAKING _KIDNAP_ THE _QUEEN_?!"

* * *

 **A/N: So there ends the tenth chapter! The Yorozuya finally make their entrance! I hope you enjoyed reading it, as much as I enjoyed writing it. The next few chapters will most probably be quite lighthearted, with lots of fluff and humor. I'm not sure whether I'm too good at writing humor, so do send me suggestions about all the stuff I need to improve in! Please take some time out to leave a review, I love knowing what you think of it! Constructive criticism, appreciation and corrections are all priceless!**

 **A huge thank you to everyone who favorited and followed this story, and as much gratitude to everyone who read this! I hope you had fun, and thank you again for reading!**

 **See you in the next update, and I promise it'll be soon! Sorry for making you read this long author's note, by the way.**


	11. Chapter 11

**Chapter 11: Kidnapping A Princess Requires A Great Deal Of Idiocy!**

 **Lia: I'm so glad that this story makes you happy and that you enjoy it! Truly, it's all the support from all of you guys that inspires me to update regularly; I'm quite lazy by nature, tee hee. I hope this chapter meets your expectations and that you will find it fun. Thank you for reviewing, and I hope you enjoy reading!**

 **Putxi: Your review really made me smile like an idiot, (which I am)! I'm really happy that you loved the first part! I hope you find this chapter funny and enjoyable too, and I'm glad that I could fulfill your expectations by including Gin chan. Honestly, I wasn't really planning too, but I'm real glad that I did, tee hee. I hope you have fun reading, and thank you very much for your review!**

 **Now, onto the story!**

* * *

The leader of the Yorozuya thought for a while before walking out of the alleyway with a resolute step. Shinpachi looked startled, was he going to say something inspiring? Had he decided to do the job?

"Listen up, Patsuan; we are going to do this job. We are going to complete it grandly, and then, we shall ask for Hijikata kun's entire salary as payment. Those annoying tax robbers will not only lose their reputation, but also their money! What do you think of my plan, Shinpachi?"

"ARE YOU NUTS?! You only want to do it because of the money! Do you have any idea what'll happen to us if we get caught? My sister will _bloody murder_ me! And it's not just anyone we have to kidnap, it's the frigging princess!"

"Such trivial worries do not matter, Shinpachi. I hope you realize that _Jump_ comes out tomorrow and I don't have enough money to buy it! That is why we _must_ do this job, so motivate yourself!"

" _I'd say your worry is the most trivial of them all!"_

Half an hour later, both of them stood blankly in front of the royal palace of Edo, the same question in both of their minds.

"Say, Patsuan, what are we supposed to do first?"

Shinpachi was just about to yell at his boss for nearly the hundredth time that day, when everything suddenly turned dark and he felt his head being engulfed by an unknown entity. There was something sharp poking into the top of his head….

Sadaharu had chomped down on both of their heads, barking excitedly. He was happy to be able to play with two new chew toys and rapidly dragged them inside the castle. None of the patrolling guards even noticed the giant dog trot by, two flailing humans in his mouth, for they were all deeply engrossed in a rather 'colorful' magazine someone had smuggled in. Luckily for said two humans, Tama spotted the dog and immediately ordered him to spit them out if he wanted dog biscuits for lunch.

After that near death experience, Gin and Shinpachi were covered in blood and scared out of their skins and almost abandoned the job before Tama calmly mentioned the exact value of the Shinsengumi Vice-Commander's salary and all the other benefits they would be getting. The duo sat back at once and listened as Tama quietly explained the situation.

"Sougo sama has ordered for Kagura sama to be confined within the castle. We request you to rescue her and accompany her on a tour through the city. Her room is the one at the top of the east tower. And, Gintoki san, please be ah, warned, that our princess is quite 'unique'." The maid smiled and left, handing them a key to one of the backdoors of the tower.

Shinpachi stared after her, saying, "What did she mean by that? Gin san, we seem to have entered the palace, but we need to think of a plan now…"

"Patsuan, doing something ordinary requires planning and sensible people. But doing something extraordinary requires an outstanding idiot. And idiots never make plans."

Shinpachi raised his hands in defeat, though he was smiling slightly. Both of them walked straight in, after unlocking the door. As they climbed up the staircase, Shinpachi remembered, with a start, that his sister too, was a retainer at the royal palace of Rakuyou. She would often write letters about her life there, and she always mentioned the young princess. He wondered whether the person they were going to see was the same princess.

Suddenly, he collided straight into Gin, who had stopped dead at the top of the staircase, gazing at something. Anxious about the possibility of it being soldiers, Shinpachi nearly fell off the stairs when he saw it was portrait of a giant parfait.

"Ah, Patsuan, isn't it a magnificent piece of art? I feel like I can almost eat it…"

"JUST HOW MUCH OF AN IDIOT ARE YOU?! You stopped just because you saw a _picture of a parfait?_ And whatever is something like that even doing in a palace?!"

Just then, a paperweight came flying out of nowhere, causing both of them to fall flat onto the ground to avoid the deadly projectile. Shinpachi yelled in terror, even as another 'missile' came flying. Soon enough, the thrower appeared at the top of the stairs, rubbing her eyes sleepily, her hair and clothes disheveled.

"Whoever you are, just shut up, yes? You're disturbing my beauty sleep, uh huh. I don't really feel like killing you now."

Gin looked at her red hair, blue eyes and the kunai in her hand. He asked the first question that came to his mind," Oi, are you an assassin that guards the princess? Then-"He stopped abruptly as a kunai pierced his head, blood spurting out immediately.

" _I'm_ the freaking _princess,_ you useless old geezer."

A few minutes later, Gin and Shinpachi were seated opposite Kagura, who had brought herself back to some resemblance of a princess. Gin could barely believe that the red haired Chinese girl, who seemed as violent as a certain gorilla lady when she was angry, was the helpless princess who had pleaded, appealed for rescue. The girl somehow managed to guess what he was thinking and said, picking her nose, "Me too, when I requested for the Yorozuya, I did not think that I'd get a glasses stand and a white haired geezer, yup. And I'm definitely trapped here; I can't get out of this tower, uh huh! Hanako chan helped me write the letter, so don't blame me for the sentimentality."

"Oi, my hair is silver, not white!"

"Gin san, please….So, your majesty, you want us to help you get out and have a fun day in the city? But, please pardon me; you seem capable of doing it yourself…"

"Of course I am, Megane! But it's a real waste of energy and I guess it wouldn't be too much fun, because the Sadist hasn't recovered and Mayora doesn't fight women; so there wouldn't be much fun in it. But a daring escape, it is always more, more fun, yes?"

"Please don't call me Megane, your majesty. I'm Shinpachi and this is Gin san."

"Then don't call me your majesty too, uh huh. I'm Kagura! Now, get me out of the castle!"

* * *

After an hour, in the throne room of the Edo palace,

"Sougo, just where do you think you are going? Get back here right now; the ambassadors will be arriving soon."

"I don't really care, so please go and die, Hijikata san. I've got something more important to attend to, than some ugly graybeards."

"So the sadist is missing his wife, eh? You're truly more hopeless at this than even Kondou san."

"I don't want to hear that from you, Hijikata san. I shall be introducing you to my deluxe bazooka if you say a word more, so keep quiet."

"Toshi is right, Sougo, well, not about the last part, though… If you really wanted to keep China san by your side, then you should just have told her so, instead of locking her up! Or better, you should have begun to stalk her-OUCH!"

" **I really don't want to hear about it, Kondou san."**

Hijikata simply blew out a swirl of smoke as the prince swiftly walked away, his bazooka slung over his shoulder. He was now going to have to do all the paperwork that Sougo should be doing…. It was at times like these when he seriously wondered whether arranging a royal coup was such a crime or not.

* * *

Several minutes later, everyone at the Shinsengumi headquarters began to wonder if they should have committed seppuku as Hijikata san had ordered them to, countless times before. Because, when Okita Sougo walked in, radiating a black, bone chilling aura, holding the biggest bazooka ever, they knew that they were in for much, much worse deaths.

" **Where the hell is my China? Wasn't it your jobs to be guarding her, well?"**

* * *

At about the same time, Kagura was happily skipping through the city, along with Gin and Shinpachi, completely undisturbed by the disaster she had brought upon the Shinsengumi. They had somehow managed to sneak out of the palace through sheer luck and also a bit of brute force, as Gin had had to beat up a few guards on the way. They had been wandering on the roads for nearly an hour, Kagura dragging them to a mega sukonbu sale and much more. She suddenly stopped, even though there was nothing interesting around, turned and said," Gin chan, I'm _hungry_."

"Nothing I can do about it, brat. Ain't got any money."

"Gin san, is that how you talk to a princess?! Kagura san, how about we have a small meal at that shop? We can, er, get Hijikata san to pay for it later."

Shinpachi deeply regretted his statement an hour later, after Kagura had wolfed down more than twenty courses of rice, fish, meat, sweets and was still waving cheerfully for more. Gin himself had consumed more than ten strawberry parfaits, and Shinpachi had to wonder why his boss wasn't diabetic yet. Finally, after what seemed to be an eternity, Kagura sat back, patting her inflated stomach with a highly contented expression.

"That was a really good meal, yup! But won't you die of disability if you consume so many parfaits, Gin chan?

"It's _diabetes,_ royal brat. You have no right to say that after eating fifty bowls of rice, and don't you know how healthy milk is, huh?"

"Um, excuse me, customers, here is the bill. Can you please pay it and leave immediately? Please don't take offence, but you are scaring normal citizens away."

Gin's face turned serious all of a sudden, as he turned towards the girl beside him, "Kagura, I'm now going to teach you an invaluable skill, which will always help you, no matter where you end up. And that skill is; how to successfully run away when you're presented a bill!" Before the manager could say a word, the silver haired man had hurtled out, leaving only a cloud of dust behind him. Within milliseconds, the girl too sped after him, her umbrella open over her head. Shinpachi soon followed them, though not before hastily consoling the livid manager that the Vice commander of the Shinsengumi would eventually pay the bill.

* * *

"That was surprisingly fun, uh huh! I've never defaulted on a bill before!"

"Kagura, you are indeed a fast learner. I'm highly impressed. However, you still have a lot to learn yet, like running away even faster, before they notice you're gone!"

"Gin san, just what the hell do you think you're teaching her?! How the hell is defaulting on a bill something to be proud of?! Just how low are you going to fall?"

"Megane, stop it; you're a defaulter yourself, yes? Do not belittle this amazing skill."

"Leave it, Kagura, he just takes his straight man role too seriously. It is one of the reasons why he has become so plain and unnoticeable."

"That is why he will probably never get a woman, yes?"

"STOP PICKING ON ME, THE TWO OF YOU! How did you become so friendly within such a short time?! And why the heck are you so similar to each other?" The three of them continued arguing with each other at the top of their voices, until they were interrupted by a calm voice.

"It is indeed a surprise to meet you here, Gintoki. And who is this young lady with you?"

"Zura, what are you doing here? You had better not planted any bombs nearby, or else…"

"It's not Zura, it's Katsura! How many times do I have to tell you that?"

"But I think Zura fits you better, yes? It's also simpler to say, uh huh."

"Young lady, it's not Zura, it's Katsura. May I have the pleasure of knowing who you are?"

"Sure, I'm Kagura, princess of Rakuyou and Edo, and also the wife of a sadistic bastard, who is your ruler! And who are you?"

"You are Okita Sougo's wife? This is indeed a divine opportunity… I'm Katsura Kotarou, leader of the Joui faction and the spearhead behind the movement to overthrow the monarchy!"

"Then we'll get along perfectly, yes? I also want to take revenge on that Sadist, uh huh!"

"That is the spirit of a true leader! I believe we can accomplish a lot together!"

"OI, ZURA! ARE YOU FREAKING TRYING TO CONVERT THE PRINCESS INTO A JOUI REBEL?! And what sort of a wife are you, trying to stage a coup against your husband?! But why am I even doing the straight man role in the first place?!"

Shinpachi sighed for the millionth time that day as he watched the three incredible idiots bicker. Kagura, for one, hardly appeared like a princess; at the moment, she was banging Gin san's and Zura's heads together for crushing a piece of her sukonbu. But he had to smile a little; the princess sure seemed to having fun.

Suddenly, a great crashing noise rang out, and everyone ceased fighting as they observed an entire battalion of Shinsengumi soldiers scatter throughout the main road, apparently engaged in a desperate search. They looked at each other and then at Kagura, before unanimously deciding to run.

* * *

 **A/N: So there ends the eleventh chapter, I hope you had fun reading it! I'm a little worried whether it's as entertaining** **as I meant** **it to be, because like fighting scenes, humor too isn't my strongest suit. So please take some time out to review and send me suggestions for improvement too; I love to know what you think of it. As always, follows, favorites, reviews, constructive criticism and anything else are very, very, much appreciated!**

 **Thanks a lot for reading!**


	12. Chapter 12

**Chapter 12: You Run Into a Lot of People During a Chase**

 **Lia: Thank you so much for reviewing! I'm really happy you found the chapter funny and I was a bit relieved too. And yep, there's going to be a chase, and I hope I've done justice to it! Thank you too for reading, and I hope you like this chapter too!**

 **Mellize: Thank you so much for reviewing and I was really delighted to know that you enjoyed the Okikagu interactions. You're one of my favorite authors too, and such a compliment truly means a lot! I hope this chapter meets your expectations. And by the way, I rather like your new username, it's pretty charming!**

 **nathan19bane: Thank you a lot for reviewing! I'm truly pleased to know that you found it amusing! Please do stay up to the ending; I swear I'll make it worthwhile! Hope you like this chapter too!**

 **Putxi: Thank you again, for the review! I wholeheartedly share your love for the Yorozuya, aren't they awesomely unique? I hope you enjoy this chapter too, and thank you once more for everything!**

 **Now, with lots of gratitude to everyone for waiting, let's move on to the story!**

* * *

Seconds after the Shinsengumi appeared in the city, Gin, Kagura, Zura and Shinpachi were flattened against the nearest wall in a desperate attempt to avoid getting caught by the police. Zura looked gravely puzzled, wondering aloud," Speak of the devil! What are the Shinsengumi doing here?! I was sure they weren't tracking me…"

"It's not you they are after, Zura, it's me! That damned Sadist, he actually sent those tax robbers to search for me!"

"Hey, royal brat, you said you wanted to have some fun? So how about a chase throughout the city? Let's give Oogushi kun a run for his money, shall we?"

Kagura stared at Gin, looking amazed before giving him a huge grin. She cheered and nodded," That will be fun, yes! I haven't had an escapade since ages! Let's show those tax robbers and the jerks leading them how incapable they are!"

"That is exactly the attitude of a true leader! Let's move towards the goal ahead of us, with all of our might!"

All of Shinpachi's yelling was lost in the air as they hurtled out of the alley, even as the Shinsengumi officers immediately began to chase after them. The human wearing glasses could only run behind the three idiots, and hope that his sister would never come to hear of it.

* * *

Hijikata chewed his cigarette in irritation and anger as he spotted three highly recognizable figures dashing away. One was obviously the princess, with her red hair and purple parasol, the other was just as clearly the good for nothing Yorozuya boss, with that silver perm, and the other, it seemed very, very much like the wanted terrorist Katsura. But that couldn't be, right? There was no way that the princess of Edo would tag along with someone who wanted to overthrow her very husband, right? Hijikata nearly slapped himself; with this particular princess, _anything_ was possible. And whether he liked it or not, Sougo had issued orders that the princess be brought back within an hour, and accordingly, Hijikata ordered his men to give chase, as fast as they could, if they did not want to commit seppuku.

* * *

The trio ran for quite a distance before Katsura pulled up before a certain 'bar'. Kagura stared at the sign in utter surprise, not knowing in the least what to expect next. Gin felt like permanently kicking his old friend off the face of the earth, and Shinpachi abandoned any attempt at straight manning. The reason? It was the bar run by none other than Mademoiselle Saigou. In other words, the transvestite or okama bar.

"Gintoki, this is the perfect place to conceal ourselves! The Shinsengumi will never guess our true identity!"

"ARE YOU BONKERS, ZURA?! I AIN'T DRESSING UP AS A WOMAN AGAIN!"

"I didn't think you were transvestites, Gin chan, Zura. Are you one too, Shinpachi? No, forget it; glasses don't really have a gender, yes?"

"I'M NOT A GLASSES OR A TRANSVESTITE! Why don't I ever get any respect?!"

Suddenly, the owner of the bar grabbed Gin and Zura by their heads, exclaiming good humouredly, "Paako, Zurako, long times no see! Now why don't ya get dressed up an' have a drink with us ladies?!"

Minutes later, when the Shinsengumi passed by, searching every location frantically, they saw two new okama swaying clumsily to the music while the other spectators applauded and laughed heartily. One had extremely curly silver hair, and the other had black hair as beautiful as a noblewoman's. Promptly deciding that they would definitely _not_ find their targets there, they ran away at once before the drunken revelers spotted them.

"See, Gintoki? It was truly a marvelous plan."

"Oi, Gin chan, Zura, dance more gracefully! Sway your hips, ha ha ha!"

"It's not Zura, it's Katsura!"

"Oogushi kun, I'm going to be taking your annual salary, for the rest of your life as payment for all this."

"The only thing marvelous here is your idiocy. I won't even try to be the straight man anymore."

After half an hour or so, Gin finally managed to escape from the terrifying grip of Mademoiselle Saigou and lost no time in dragging out Kagura and Shinpachi along with him. The three of them sped down the roads again, with only Shinpachi feeling a little guilty about deserting Zura. They were headed in the direction of the Yorozuya office, because Gin had decided that he _had_ to have a drink of strawberry milk, that too _at once_. It was a craving, he explained, that couldn't be appreciated by youngsters.

But when they got there, the first thing they saw was an old lady, with graying hair, but none the less fearsome for that as she pointed a broom at Gin, yelling," WHEN THE HELL ARE YOU GOING TO PAY THIS MONTH'S RENT, YOU USELESS SILVER PERM?!"

Within seconds, they were running as fast as they could in the opposite direction, Kagura exclaiming, "Gin chan, just who was that scary monster? "

"That was the terror known as my landlady, Otose! Now run as fast as you can, before she gets us and sucks our lives out of us!"

"I'M GOING TO THROW OUT ALL YOUR _JUMP_ MAGAZINES IF YOU DON'T GET BACK HERE AT ONCE!"

Gin stopped immediately, horror struck. Shinpachi face palmed as his boss ran back to his landlady, begging her not to throw out his most beloved possessions. Kagura followed after him as if she had already got used to it, and mentally made a note to add strawberry parfaits to all the list of stuff she was going to send Toshi to buy. With his own money, of course.

They were soon seated at the counter of the bar, after Kagura had explained that the pending rent would be paid soon enough, and had given the old lady a personal assurance. Shinpachi could only pity the Shinsengumi Vice commander; he really had no idea of the bleeding he would soon be put through. Well, perhaps that was only appropriate for tax robbers, as Gin san said later. Otose served them drinks; strawberry milk for Gin along with orange juice for Kagura and Shinpachi and they soon struck up a conversation.

"So, you're the princess of this country, and you're exploring the city? This is indeed the first time I've heard of a royal doing something like that. It's probably because of the bad influence of this silver perm idiot…"

"OI, who're you calling a silver perm idiot?! And I am not a bad influence either!"

"Gin san, I think you've no right to say that after all the things you just taught her. Defaulting bills, dancing in a bar and not paying rent are _not_ examples of a good influence, no matter how you look at it."

"You're really going to hear it from the prince, fool. I suppose it's because of you guys that the Shinsengumi is practically raiding the city?"

"Well, blame the sadist for that! He was the one who locked me up in a tower because I put laxatives in his dinner! I had to escape, so it's his fault for compelling a sweet princess like me to commit such a reckless act, uh huh." Otose merely raised her eyebrows as the 'sweet' princess ruthlessly slammed Gin and Shinpachi's heads into the floor for rolling their eyes and coughing disbelievingly at her claim.

"Well, that might be, but why don't ya go back now? Kabuki ain't safe for ya, princess. Besides, I should think your husband would have learnt something by now. Or do you hate the palace?"

"No, no, I love the palace! It's my home, yes? And it's not like I _really_ 'hate'that Sadist either…. But the jerk always provokes and insults me, and I get a weird feeling in my stomach every time I go near him, uh huh. And he'll only tease me more if I tell him…."

"Looks like you've really fallen for the guy… girl, I may be an old granny, but let me give you some advice; if you want to knock sense into a man, you've got to beat it into him. Avoiding him won't help you any."

Just as Kagura was about to protest that there was no way that she had fallen for the said sadist, there was a loud knock on the doors of the bar. A voice, familiar to all of them called out," We're looking for princess and also that bastard Yorozuya! Turn them in immediately if they are inside!"

Otose sighed exasperatedly, before looking at the trio. She had to wait but little for the answer as they sprang up and tiptoed as quietly and quickly as they could towards the back doors, hurtling out at top speed even as the demon vice commander of the Shinsengumi slammed open the door.

"That's really rude manners you police have got there, barging into a bar by breaking down the door. If you are looking for a bunch of idiots then you can leave now; they aren't here."

* * *

The next place they landed up at was a bridge, a relatively normal spot compared to their previous destinations that day. Kagura wondered whether they were going to have a bit of peace for a moment; not that she minded either way. However, it seemed that peace had cut off all ties with them or disaster had just become great friends with them. For, at that very moment, a loud whirr, crack and crash sounded in their ears. In a flash of steel, hot air and bricks, they all found themselves falling through thin air. A large spaceship had crashed right into the river, destroying most of the houses on the riverbanks and snapping the bridge itself. Kagura regretted every second of her adventurous plan as she plummeted to what was surely going to be her demise…

Or maybe not. Even though she was soaked from head to toe, her clothes dripping with mud, and her body ached all over due to the fall, she was still alive. And so were Gin chan and Shinpachi, because she could definitely hear them yelling. Deciding to murder the person who was driving the damned spaceship, she pushed herself out of the reeds and mud and walked towards the noise. Seriously, she wondered, whoever had such an annoying laugh?

"Ahahaha, Kintoki, I'm sorry! I had no idea that we were about ta crash into a bridge! Ahahaha, Mutsu, why didn't ya tell me?"

" _Because you were too busy puking, Sakamoto_. Next time this happens, I'm kicking you out; the Kaientai can function _better without_ an idiot captain like you."

A tall man, with a brown perm that rivaled Gin-chan's was laughing apologetically, even as the light haired woman next to him muttered death threats. Gin chan had begun arguing with the guy, yelling something about remembering his name correctly and driving like a madman. But it was the woman who surprised Kagura. She racked her brains, trying to recall her stern, but familiar face, when it all came back to her. It was her favorite cousin, quite distantly linked by blood, but they had always had a surprising connection with each other.

"Mucchan, it's really been a long time, yes?! Do you remember me?"

"What a surprise, Kagura. I do remember; it is impossible to forget you. It's good to see you again, though I'm sorry that you look a total mess because of this useless jerk and his idiocy."

Kagura grinned happily at that, all anger evaporating as she skipped towards the older woman. The icy Vice captain of the Kaientai smiled warmly and allowed Kagura to hug her, despite getting covered with mud herself, even as the men looked on in complete surprise.

"Ahahaha, seems like they know each other. Kintoki, ya didn't tell me about yer new friend!"

"My name is _Gintoki,_ dammit! That brat is the princess of Edo and do you have any freaking idea what would have happened to me if she got injured?"

"But I didn't know that you'd be here! Oh, right, I didn't even know that we had entered Earth, ahahaha! Guess I got a little too wasted…"

"Sakamoto san, exactly how can you _not_ know if you have entered a new planet or not?!"

Meanwhile, Kagura and Mutsu were having a small chat, telling each other of all the stuff they had done recently and how insufferable the men around them were. Kagura cheered up a lot on hearing Mutsu complain about Sakamoto, figuring that at least the Sadist didn't dump all his work on her or run away to drink every time and compel the others to pick him up. He was definitely an insufferable, sadistic jerk, but sure, he was rather lovable and entertaining sometimes….

Kagura immediately changed her thoughts as she heard a bazooka fire, the bullet narrowly missing them. Even without turning back, she knew that the sadist had come after her, armed with his biggest bazooka and probably a lot of other torture weapons. Quickly bidding farewell to her cousin, she, Gin, and Shinpachi began to run again. Her only thought, as she ducked another missile was, _No, no, cross out everything I said earlier. He's truly the_ _ **worst**_ _guy in the whole world!_

* * *

Sougo's eyes sparked with anger and annoyance. After a really long and tiring search throughout the city (all _he_ had done was order the others around) _,_ he had finally managed to find his China, and now she was running away from him, that too with the idiotic Yorozuya. Did she really prefer their company to him? Well, there was no way he was going to let that pass. Aiming precisely, he fired several shots of his bazooka, but she dodged them all, moving as gracefully as a deer. Suddenly, a small ball landed at his feet, bursting into thick white smoke, completely obscuring his vision. He could hear Hijikata yelling next to him, but all he really bothered about was that he had lost sight of her.

* * *

Kagura muffled a surprised exclamation as Gin grabbed her collar and pulled her into a tiny warehouse on the riverbank, along with Shinpachi. Just as she was about to begin shouting at him, she noticed Zura, still dressed up as a woman, waiting for them inside it.

"Zura, what are you doing here? What is going on? Weren't you supposed to be at the bar, yes?"

"Leader, it's not Zura, it's Katsura! I've thrown a smoke bomb which will throw off your pursuers, so you need not worry about them now."

"Oi, you never told me that your husband liked destroying stuff with a bazooka so much! Gin chan's precious silver perm was about to be singed black, you know that?!"

"I thought you'd already know how crazy that idiot is, Gin chan. That jerk _is_ the ruler, yes?"

"Gin san, you really never read the newspapers, do you?"

"Jump is all that I need to read, Patsuan!"

"I truly give up on you Gin san…. But that doesn't really matter now. You do realize, don't you, Kagura san, that this escapade is putting the entire city into a lot of trouble? We understand if you don't want to go back, but…"

"Of course I get it, Megane. I'm truly a brilliant princess, uh huh. But, for the first time, maybe you're right; I do have to go back. Even though it was real fun today, I need to get back home and put the jerk in his place, yes? But, let's do this again, yes?"

"You got it, royal brat. Just don't forget to send me Oogushi kun's salary as payment."

"Leader, we shall overthrow this system together! I look forward to our great plans in the future! Till then, good luck!"

"Katsura san, please don't convert the princess into a Joui rebel. Honestly, you two have already taught her enough 'stuff'… I will also look forward to our next meeting, Kagura san. Please do not hesitate to ask us, the Yorozuya for help if you ever need anything!"

The princess grinned really wide, before exiting the warehouse confidently. They could hear her yelling," Hey, stupid sadist! Put away that bazooka and _get down from Sadaharu_! Sadaharu, we're going home, come on!"

"Well, it sure was one exciting day."

* * *

The next morning, at the royal palace,

Sougo sipped his coffee with pursed lips. The moment they had got back the last day, Totsuan had pointed a cannon at him and ordered him to repeal the royal decree at once. Apparently, his beloved daughter had gone off on a date while he was distracted with the search.

But a tiny smile graced his lips as he watched Kagura gobble down the breakfast, smiling happily and go about doing all the crazy stuff she did every day. He mentally resolved that watching her fool around, her face gleaming, was far better that shutting her up in a tower just so that he could derive sadistic pleasure from her upset and angry face.

 _Did i just think of being less sadistic? Looks like I'm really going crazy now…_

Kagura turned abruptly and walked up to Hijikata, as if she had just remembered something.

 _What the hell does she have to say to that Mayora? And why is she smiling so happily?_

" Mayora, here are the bills for the lunch, Gin chan's rent, the newest edition of Jump, strawberry parfaits, Zura's bombs, sukonbu, repairs, orange juice and the reward for the job. Please go and pay them all, with your salary. Refuse, and I will tell Tama to throw out all the mayo stored in the basement, uh huh."

 _It looks like she's really as sadistic as me. China, you really won over my heart by that amazing act. Well, if it's for you, then I guess I can be a little less sadistic then, though just for this month._

* * *

 **A/N: So there ends the twelfth chapter! I'm very, very sorry for updating so late; I had a couple of exams going on. But they went pretty well, though they won't be over till March. Thanks a lot to everyone for reading this story; it means a huge lot to me. Also thank you for waiting, I really feel a bit upset about that… But I hope you enjoyed this chapter!**

 **Please take some time out to review and send me suggestions for improvement too; I love to know what you think of it. As always, follows, favorites, reviews, constructive criticism and anything else are very, very, much appreciated!**


	13. Chapter 13

**Chapter 13: Everything Has Its Perks, Even A Cold!**

 **Akely: Welcome back, I really missed you! I'm sorry to hear that you've had a hard week, but I do hope things get better for you soon! Thank you for reviewing, and I'm happy that you liked the way the Yorozuya was introduced. That you found it similar to Gintama, is one of the biggest compliments ever! And I guess you're right about the plot becoming redundant, exams are hardly great stimulants of creativity. Though that's not an excuse, and I'll definitely make an improvement. Thanks for the tips too, and I hope this chapter is a refreshingly enjoyable one!**

 **Mellize: Thank you very much for reviewing, I'm really happy you liked the chapter! I really enjoy writing Okikagu, and I'll work real hard to make this a good story. Thank you too for the compliment, I don't get it all the time, haha. Nevertheless, I hope you enjoy this chapter too!**

 **Lia: Thank you so, so much for the review and encouragement! I'm real far from being a truly good writer, but I guess I do write quickly, tee hee. It's probably because of practice in submitting language assignments… And yup, education is** _ **really**_ **important, and I do hope to pass well and fulfill my parents' expectations, as high as they might be. Thank you for the luck, and I'll definitely give my best at it all! Hope you like this chapter too!**

 **nathan19bane: Thank you so much for reviewing, your words truly relieved me. Don't worry, I promise that I'll update as regularly as I can, I won't ever be forgetting this story. And I'm so glad that you like the budding romance between the extreme sadists, after all, Okikagu is simply the best! Well, at least in my point of view, no offence to anyone… Anyway, I hope you like this chapter too!**

 **Putxi: Thank you for reviewing, you always make my day! I was very much delighted to know that you found the ending moments cute, I had a lot of fun writing it myself too! I hope you enjoy this chapter, it's practically stuffed with fluff, ('pun' intended), and thanks again!**

 **Now, onto the story!**

* * *

Kagura truly felt terrible in the morning. She just could not persuade herself to get out of bed and go down for breakfast, but neither could she sleep comfortably. Her eyes and throat stung weirdly and she had _no_ idea why she was shivering, because, dammit, it was so hot! Suddenly, she sneezed, the sheer force of it causing her to jump. Sniffling and rubbing her runny nose, she tried to go back to sleep again, for she felt that God was going to be a little late with his blessings.

A few hours later, everyone at the breakfast table looked openly anxious; the princess had not come down yet, even though it was well past ten 'o'clock, and a huge vessel of egg and rice sat invitingly on the table. The Shinsengumi fervently prayed that she had not gone off on another one of her escapades again; they most certainly did _not_ want to be sent off on a search mission again by their sadistic prince. Said prince himself sat at the table, idly sipping his coffee, looking as deadpan as ever.

"Sougo, where is China san? I haven't seen her since yesterday, is she doing all right?"

"Don't talk to me as if I'm that glutton's caretaker, Kondou san. She's probably in bed or something."

"Well, if I recall correctly, it was you who sent out all the troops when you found out that she was missing, wasn't it, Sougo? And if she has run away again, _you're_ gonna pay her bills, not me."

"I see; I'll ask her to default on some more, then, Hijikata san. But maybe I'll pay them, if you are kind enough to go die, and leave all your money to me."

"Like hell I'd ever do that!"

Soon, after a rather uneventful breakfast, Sougo tucked his hands into his pockets and directed his footsteps towards his China's room, gradually quickening his pace. _It's so weird of her not to turn up for breakfast; she never misses a chance to eat egg and rice. But why the hell am I going to her room anyways? Yeah, it's_ _ **not at all**_ _because I'm worried about her, I just need to make sure she hasn't run away again... it's_ _ **not at all**_ _because I miss her loud, rude, irritating company or anything..._ _ **I should just stop trying to fool myself.**_

He pushed the door open as quietly as he could, because he had learnt the hard way that disturbing China when she was sleeping was akin to poking a stick into the nostrils of a fire breathing dragon. A small spark of relief lit up within him, though he would commit seppuku before he admitted it, on finding her still wrapped up in bed. He walked closer to her, wondering how best or most sadistically, to wake her up, when he noticed her turning and tossing about in her sleep, feverishly murmuring something. Her cheeks were flushed red, a strangely beautiful contrast to her pale skin. Sougo instinctively reached out a hand to stroke her, but he withdrew it soon after on feeling her temperature. He was miles away from being a doctor, but he could understand well enough that she had quite a high fever.

 _Well, that happens to suit my sadism perfectly..._

An evil grin spread over his face as he contemplated all the sadistic fun he could have, since China was definitely not in the state to kill him, which was what she would usually do. Having caught a cold, she was now at _**his**_ mercy...

" _It's so hot... sticky... Make it go away, please..."_ Kagura's voice was barely a whimper, but Sougo heard her, nevertheless. Somewhere within him, he wanted, really wanted to help her and just wipe that look off her face, but as the Prince of the planet of Sadists, he just could not show kindness to his rival, right? As the girl in front of him trembled again, he cursed silently, making his decision. Sougo grabbed the nearest cloth he found, wet it with the cold water placed by her bed, and clumsily placed it over her sweaty forehead. It was something his sister would do for him whenever he got sick, though he had no idea why he was currently doing it for her now, instead of playing a prank on her.

Even as the thought passed through his head, he sighed, because he _did have_ a pretty good idea why. Still, he decided to settle for the reason that China was going to be in _his_ debt, and he could make her do anything he asked when she got better again. The slight worry in his eyes eased when he felt her temperature drop down just a little and her breathing become calmer. He started in surprise as she caught his hand all of a sudden, holding it tight, even as she slept on. The corners of his lips turned up just a bit as he too got on the bed, with Kagura still holding onto his hand. He pulled his sleeping mask over his eyes and decided to take a short nap, leaning against the back of the bed. After all, it wasn't as if he really had anything better to do.

* * *

Nearly an hour later, when Kagura woke up, she almost had a heart attack on seeing the Sadist beside her, his face nuzzling into the crook of her neck. She would have thrown him off and punched him that very instant, but Kagura felt too sick and tired to do so. And no, it was definitely _**not**_ because she liked his warm scent, or how innocent he looked when he was sleeping or because she didn't really want to let go of his hand. No, it was _**none**_ of those reasons at all, nuh-uh.

She froze as she felt his lips brush her cheek, which was redder than a tomato by then. And it did not help her in the least that he had tucked his other arm around her waist, effectively trapping her. Just then, the door swung open, revealing Tama and Sadaharu, who were at the entrance. Tama started at the sight before her, and her eyes twinkled with merriment, utterly oblivious to her mistress' expression. Sadaharu woofed approvingly, before bouncing over to join the cuddle.

"Tama, this isn't at all what you think, it's not like I was sleeping with the jerk or anything like that!"

"Understood, Kagura sama. But then, why are your cheeks so red? Is it because…"

"No, no, nothing like that, uh huh! I just don't feel well…"

The maid's eyes briefly flashed with worry as she set down the tray of food and passed a hand over the girl's forehead. She sighed as she told the girl, "It seems that you have a bad cold, Kagura sama. It is probably because you returned home wet yesterday. Please wait a while, I will send some medicines and chicken soup."

Kagura, who had looked upset, immediately brightened up at the mention of chicken soup. "Thanks a lot, Tama! Now please get this jerk off me, will you?"

Tama simply smiled, before turning to leave, "It's alright, Kagura sama, I'm sure you're in good hands with him."

The sound of the door closing awakened Sougo, much to Kagura's embarrassment. He too seemed to be startled by their current position, though surprise was soon replaced by a sadistic grin on seeing her crimson face.

"My, my, China, I never knew you were this eager for me. You should have just told me that you wanted to become my S&M toy..."

"LIKE HELL I DO! Get your hands off me, you sadist! How dare you try to violate me when I was asleep, yes?! You're a pervert, a jerk, a-a-aCHOOOOO!"

"That's one monstrous sneeze, China. Want to cause an earthquake or what?"

"Just shut the hell up! Only an insensitive bastard like you wouldn't even realize that I have a cold and irritate me! Now do me a favor and just go away!"

"Well, it's your own fault that you have a cold, China, so I don't see any reason why I should be so understanding or whatever. And now that you asked me to, I'm not gonna move a single inch out."

Kagura glared at him, her eyes slowly welling up with tears of fury, frustration and helplessness. Sougo noticed that her temperature had soared again, and it was clearly hurting her to yell at him. Sighing at himself, he let go of her, tucking her into the blankets before she could protest any more. He soaked the cloth again, placing it on her forehead with rare gentleness. Kagura could only stare at him dumbfounded; was the person treating her with such kindness really the Sadist she knew? She hardly got the time to voice her question when Tama entered with a large bowl of soup and a tiny jar of orange syrup.

Kagura knew that the soup smelled and tasted delicious, but woe to her, she couldn't muster the slightest desire to devour it. It was one of the reasons she _hated_ being sick; she couldn't eat, but she also couldn't _live_ without eating! She watched miserably as Tama handed over the bowl to Sougo, along with the medicine and left. He dipped the spoon into it, almost hesitantly, before turning to her.

Kagura nearly jumped out of bed when she realized what the Sadist was about to do. He was about to feed her and it was most likely to end up in some frighteningly sadistic prank or torture or…

"Oi, China, open your smelly mouth and eat. I am not going to hold this for the whole day."

There was no retort that came to her at that moment, so Kagura did precisely what he asked and opened her mouth, letting him feed her the soup. The routine was repeated till most of the soup was over, though Kagura truly felt that she was dreaming. There was _no_ way the sadist would do a complete 180' and become so loving… _Yup, I'm really dreaming now. No way would the Sadist ever love me…_

She was so lost in her thoughts that she barely noticed him waving the syrup in front of her, looking slightly irritated. "China, just drink this and go to sleep, will you? I'm not in a mood to humor you now, so hurry up." Kagura felt far too weak to punch him, so she meekly swallowed it all, thanking God that it was fruity and sweet and not bitter like the medicines of Rakuyou. Feeling really sleepy all of a sudden, she curled up under her blankets again, her eyelids drooping. Out of the corner of her eye, she watched Sougo get up and move in the general direction of the door.

A vague unease seized her at the thought of him leaving, and she hastily caught his sleeve by pure reflex. The plea in the action was transparent; 'please don't go'. To her astonishment, the Sadist stopped immediately and turned back, smirking arrogantly, though the look in his eyes was much softer. He laid down the medicine and climbed onto the bed despite her half hearted protests, and they were soon involved in an energetic tussle for the blankets.

An hour or so later, they finally quit fighting, and Sougo wrapped his arms around the girl, who herself cuddled closer to him. As she drifted off to sleep, Kagura decided that having a cold was not as unbearable as she had always thought. Everything had its advantages, even though she would never admit it again. Sougo too smiled a little at her rather endearing snores. Watching her sleep, he softly whispered to her, "Just so you know, I wasn't going to leave anyway, China."

* * *

Meanwhile, in another corridor of the palace,

Hijikata inhaled yet another cigarette as he gazed out of the window, muttering, "It's been far too quiet today. Wonder what those two devils are up to…"

But anyone who caught a glance of said pair of devils would have sworn that they were angels, the cutest, loveliest and most innocent victims of Cupid ever.

* * *

 **A/N: So there ends the thirteenth chapter! I hope you enjoyed it, and a massive thank you to everyone for reading!** **Please do take some time out to review and send me suggestions for improvement too; I love to know what you think of it. As always, follows, favorites, reviews, constructive criticism and anything else are very, very, much appreciated!**

 **Thanks again for reading!**


	14. Chapter 14

**Chapter 14: There's Nothing As Fun As Matchmaking A Couple When You Aren't One Of The Said Couple.**

 **Akely: Thank you for reviewing, I'm really happy that the last chapter was refreshing. I love to write fluff, so it refreshed me too, tee hee. There's going to be some developments in their romance, so I hope you'll enjoy this chapter! And I know, Sougo is really kind of cute!**

 **Putxi: Thank you for the review! I'm so delighted that you enjoyed it! But please don't die, else who's going to write reviews? Not to mention that I'll really be missing you, lol. Hope you like this chapter too!**

 **nathan19bane: Thank you for reviewing and I'm so sorry for making you wait. But I'm glad that you like the chapter, and thank you too for reading and reviewing! Hope you enjoy this one too!**

 **Furuchisa: Hey there! Thanks very much for reviewing! It really pleased me to know that you enjoyed the chapter! Honestly, I was relieved to hear that I hadn't made Sougo OOC, cause I'm always nervous about that, tee hee. As to your question, I've a headcanon that Sougo's really very lazy, so he probably does little of the official work, and mostly gets Hijikata or Yamazaki to do it for him. And yeah, he would probably do it while watching Kagura sleep, lol. Hope you liked this chapter too!**

 **Now, onto the story!**

* * *

Umibozu grumbled in annoyance as he glared at the corridor adjoining the throne room, which was the source of his irritation, but what could he do about it? He was well aware that interfering would, in all certainty, lead to him getting killed. But seriously, the nonstop giggling was freaking causing his follicles to fall out! Though said follicles had already fallen out a long time ago...

* * *

Tae, Tsukuyo and Sarutobi stood in the corridor, reading a letter and bursting into giggles at the end of every line. It was mostly the ninja who was giggling loudly, though Tae joined her frequently. Tsukuyo only smiled and blew out puffs of smoke from her kiseru, though she too chuckled occasionally.

"Look at this, 'I get a weird feeling in my stomach when he comes near'! My, oh my, Kagura chan's really fallen head over heels in love, hasn't she?"

"Seems ta me tha' she realizes it too. But I wish she'd just get tha fact tha' he feels tha same fer her."

"Ooooh, this is getting me sooo excited! Just think of all the S&M play that they can engage in... Aaah, we must suggest those to Kagura chan!"

" _Sarutobi san,_ I _do_ _ **not**_ _want to hear about your fetishes right now, and Kagura chan doesn't need too either._ Oh, coming back to the point, we must make her understand that he loves her as much as she loves him, so that they can truly become a couple!"

"If tha's what ya wanna do, then how about we invite them ta come stay here? It'll be good ta have them visit, and ya'll can do as much matchmaking as ya want."

"Tsukuyo san, this happens _very_ rarely, but you've actually had a great idea! Now all we have to do is to get her bald dad to agree to this."

"Don't worry, Sarutobi san, I'm sure he won't have a choice about the matter. There's no way we are going to let her overprotective dad get in the way of Kagura chan's happiness."

"Well then, I'm gonna go and tell tha baldy; ya can write a letter ta Kagura an' tell her ta come over with her husband for a week or so. Sarutobi, ya had better not put _any_ weird ideas in her head, yanno."

A few minutes later, Umibozu looked up from the papers in his hand to see the Courtesan of Death approaching him, as calm and collected as ever. She bowed briefly, before speaking, " Yer majesty, there's a proposal tha' needs royal assent. I request tha' ya grant it."

"What is it? I can give no guarantees..."

"It's been a while since Kagura last came, an' so we decided ta invite her and her husband fer a week's stay. I'd like ya to give yer consent to it, yer majesty."

"Kagura chan is welcome to visit as long as she likes, but I'm not having that insolent jerk of her husband here! Or better, let him come and I can beat the stuffing out of him if he touches my daughter... OUCH!"

" _The kunai I'm holding right now can kill any hope of yer hair growing back, yer majesty._ Like it or not, ya don't have a choice. So just agree ta tha idea and please remember, _ya had better behave yerself when they visit. Interfere and ya'll be losing a lot more than yer hair."_

"I-I agree."

Tsukuyo nodded, looking satisfied, and exited the room as calmly as she had entered it. Umibozu glared after her, wondering a lot about who the true ruler of the castle was, how his daughter was faring and how best to terminate the young man if he tried _anything_ inappropriate with Kagura. Without being killed by three devils manifested in the bodies of beautiful women, of course.

* * *

A few days later, in the palace of Edo,

Kagura skipped happily along the garden, reading a letter that had just arrived. Sadaharu looked rather grumpy as his mistress paid the paper in her hands more attention than him. It was bad enough that she had spent the last few days entirely with the sandy haired sadist, but now, just when he had got to play with her for an entire day, she was ignoring him for a piece of paper. His canine pride was deeply wounded, though he cheered up when she ran over to hug him, talking excitedly all along.

"Sadaharu, we're gonna have so much fun soon! I just got a letter from Anego, and she's invited us over for a visit! It's been too long since I've seen them, uh huh. Though Papi will be there too and he'll be fussing over me worse than a grandmother hen…"

"Wan!"

"Yup, that's right, Sadaharu! You can chew his head whenever he gets too annoying. But make sure to wash your mouth later, or you might just end up bald, yes? Now, should we take the Sadist along or not?"

"Waan."

"Well, I think so too; he'll just irritate me more and I'm pretty sure the baldy will be picking a fight with him or the other way around. Besides, I _really_ need some time away from him; because there's so much that I need to figure out…. I can't even _think_ properly with that jerk near me…. But on the other hand, Anego has asked me to bring him too, and I _don't_ wanna make her angry…."

Shuddering at the thought of angering her 'older sister', Kagura regretfully decided that she was going to have to take the sadist along. It was not like he did much of the paperwork anyway and well, she _did_ enjoy his company a little. Wondering whether he would even be willing to come along, she headed towards the throne room, Sadaharu behind her.

* * *

A highly important meeting was in progress, and Sougo was wishing for the thousandth time that it wasn't. For one, it was _way too boring,_ and everyone expected him to freaking stay awake _and_ take part in it. Not to mention that the prince sitting in front of him was unbelievably ugly. Perhaps it might have been bearable if he had his sleeping mask and the royal fool would stop blabbering on and on and on, but both seemed futile wishes. Mentally resolving to kill Hijikata later for subjecting him to such boredom, Sougo lazily wondered where Zura got his bombs from. _How useful they would be now…._

All of a sudden, the door swung or rather, flew open, as the queen of the palace came striding in. Sougo perked up almost immediately, though his face remained as deadpan as ever. _Looks like it might get a little interesting now. It's never boring when China is around. For once, you're really doing me a favor, China._

"Excuse me, what is the meaning of this rude interruption?! I'm in the middle of a very important dis- OWWW!" The alien prince wailed in pain as Sadaharu promptly chomped down on his head, earning a smirk from Sougo and an approving thumb up from Kagura.

"Good boy, Sadaharu. Mister, I'll have you know that I'm the queen of this palace; hence I can interrupt whichever meeting I choose to, and whenever I please to, uh huh. And it's not like the Sadist, Mayora or _anybody_ was even listening to you in the first place. "

"Hey China, hasn't anyone told you that barging into a meeting is rude? Oh, I forgot you aren't exactly a lady, you are a gluttonous monster, so I guess no one would."

"You don't have any right to say that when you're holding a bazooka under the table, you damn Sadist! Arrgh, I don't have time to argue with you, so just listen up! I'm visiting Rakuyou for a week with Sadaharu because Anego invited me over but she's also asked you to come I don't know why so are you coming or not?!" Kagura rattled off the words without a pause; she did _not_ want to stammer in front of everyone, but the butterflies in her stomach were making it so very difficult not to.

"Well, I don't see why not. Hijikata san, do all my work for me, won't you?"

"What the hell?! Do your own work yourself, you devil!"

Though Sougo's face was as expressionless as ever, Kagura could have sworn that she saw him smile, just a teensy weensy one, and that made her grin too.

* * *

A few days later, the palace of Rakuyou was filled with cheers and laughter as its princess jumped down from her steed, a giant white dog, and ran to greet everyone. Her husband followed her, yawning as if he was utterly bored, though Tsukuyo did not fail to notice that his eyes were always on her princess. Tae soon dragged the girl away, scolding her a little about the state of her hair and clothes.

Tsukuyo firmly ordered the servants to take care of the dog as best as they could, before turning to Sougo and leading him to the throne room. On the way, she calmly struck up a conversation, for she wanted to know something more about the person beside her, besides what she had already learnt from Kagura's letters.

"So, how was the journey? "

"It was fine. You don't really have to make small talk though, it's boring."

"I don't like it too, so tha's fine. I just wanted ta know, what are yer true feelings about Kagura? "

"I see…. You're going to try and get us together, aren't ya?"

"Of course we are. At least, Tae and Sarutobi are. But I'm more concerned about yer true feelings fer tha girl. Ya had better not make her cry, or _I'll kill ya in ways no sadist can imagine_."

"I like that challenge, but a crying China is just too ugly. I don't wanna see that again. And don't match make us; I don't need something like that to get my girl."

"Fine, then just go confess ta her within two days, an' we won't try a thing. Good luck dealing with tha baldy though, he's in tha' room."

Sougo only smirked as he headed towards the throne room to meet his much disliked father-in-law. Hardly fifteen minutes passed before there was a huge explosion, accompanied by an earthshaking yell and the sound of a bazooka firing.

A floor above, Tae's hands slipped due to the sudden impact, and the bowl of ice cream that she was holding tumbled onto the floor. Kagura too jumped in surprise, and the sukonbu in her hands dropped down into the fallen Haagen-Dazs, the entire mixture slowly turning a sickly, pale green. The two women stared at each other and the mess on the floor. Slowly, they looked down, even as another blast shook the building. Identical black auras filled the room, even creeping into the corridor outside.

* * *

After an hour or so, happy laughter filled the castle again, as Kagura and Tae chatted away, the younger girl narrating her numerous adventures and mischievous deeds. Tsukuyo listened with a smile, least bothered about the injured men sitting behind her.

Holding an ice pack to his black eye, Sougo grimaced at his father in law, "What the hell did you teach that monster, Baldy? How can she humanly punch this hard?"

"You dare call my daughter a monster?! You insolent brat! I'd break your bones if I wasn't so beat up now! AND DON"T CALL ME BALDY!"

"Yeah, yeah, I'll just call you 'dear father-in-law' then. Besides, you just got beat up by a pretty woman, and you call yourself a king?"

"Don't provoke me, brat, you don't know the extent of my strength. And you call that devil a pretty woman?! Oh-T-Tae san, I-I wasn't saying a-anything…p-please continue t-talking…."

"Looks like your courage disappeared with whatever hair you had, Baldy. But all this was your fault, because you started the fight."

"And you were the one who provoked me, you useless sadist! I can't believe that my only daughter has to spend the rest of her life with you…If only I had been more responsible…"

"Well, for once, you didn't say something totally wrong. Now why don't you sympathize with me a bit; I'm going to have to spend _my_ entire life with a violent, gluttonous and rude China doll."

"WHAT DID YOU JUST SAY?!"

"Oh well, I don't think I really mind though…Hey, Baldy, what would you do if I told her that I loved her and wanted to make her my toy forever?"

"Just what sort of perverted love is that?! I'd be **more than willing** to punch you to outer space, but… if Kagura is happy… I won't say a word or fire a bullet. I'm probably the worst dad ever, but I won't be in the way of Kagura's happiness for anything in the world. So, and it is killing me to say this, ahem, do as you like."

Sougo grinned at that, turning to look at his China, who was still fooling around, oblivious to everything around her.

 _I wonder what the expression on your face will be when I tell you, China. Will you punch me? Or will you smile and laugh? Or will you say something more idiotic than usual? No, that is impossible, even for someone as dense as you. You are so going to be mine, Kagura._

* * *

 **A/N: So there ends the fourteenth chapter! I apologize for it being late, but I've just been real busy with studies and all. Thankfully, my exams ended today, they went well, so I'm happy about that too… anyway, I'll upload the next chapter sooner! It'll probably be the last one, so do read it!** **A massive thank you to everyone who followed and favorited this story!** **Please do take some time out to review and send me suggestions for improvement too; I love to know what you think of it. As always, follows, favorites, reviews, constructive criticism and anything else are very, very, much appreciated!**

 **Thanks a lot for reading!**


	15. Chapter 15

**Chapter 15: The Labors Of Hercules Aren't More Difficult Than A Confession!**

 **Lia: Thank you for reviewing, I was really happy to know that you enjoyed the last chapters! And I hope this chapter is a fitting conclusion, and is fun to read. I think there's a little surprise at the end too, so I hope you enjoy reading!**

 **Putxi: Thanks for the review and thanks for waiting! I hope this chapter was worth the wait and pleases you too! And I'll admit that I'm hoping that you'll say 'Oh My God!' after reading this, tee hee…. Enjoy reading!**

 **nathan19bane: Thank you for the review and also for reading and encouraging me! And yes, you are very much welcome too! I'm sorry about the recent chapters being late, but I hope this one was worth the wait. And don't worry, I definitely won't ever let a story hang for like, two years, because I know how much that can let the readers down. And if I ever do, feel free to yell at me and get me back to business again!**

 **Now, onto the story!**

* * *

Tae's smile had never been brighter than when Tsukuyo told her what the prince of Edo intended to do. She had willingly postponed all schemes and plans, eager to see how her little sister would react to her lover's proposal. Sarutobi had deeply regretted that they would not be able to put several ideas involving bondage and ropes into action, but she too was happy to know that Sougo was finally going to take a decisive step. Even Umibozu had grudgingly agreed not to fire a single bullet or yell even once. All in all, everything was set in place for the grand event.

Kagura, of course, was entirely oblivious to all of it, and happily pranced around the garden with Sadaharu, though she did wonder why everyone was giggling so much on seeing her. She was certain that she had combed her hair well, put her cheongsam the right way and that there were no markings on her face either. Her grin lessened as she guessed that it was probably because of some prank the Sadist had played on her. Thus, she was _not_ extremely happy to see the very same Sadist coming towards her with a mysterious look on his face.

But for once, he did not seem to be in the mood to pull a prank on her or annoy her. In fact, she was astonished to see that he actually looked a little nervous…

"China, can you quit fooling around with your dog for a moment? There's something I have to tell you, something important…"

 _Something important? Whatever can it be? Kagura, you fool, control yourself, damn it! He isn't going to confess or anything,_ _ **arrgh;**_ _I should just stop this nonsense and reply!_

"What do you have to say to me, Sadist? It had better be worthwhile, yes, because I'm busy, uh huh."

"China…. I should have known that it's been you all along…. Will you be my slave forever?"

Kagura gaped at him, her cheeks reddening, at a total loss for words. Sougo silently congratulated himself, she was about to drop down at his feet, crying yes… Suddenly, her hand touched his face. Unfortunately, it wasn't to stroke or pat him, but to give him a punch that sent him crashing through a tree twenty foot away.

He could only stare in total shock and excruciating pain as she marched away in a huff without sparing a backward glance for him. _Well, looks like she didn't accept it. But why was she so furious in the first place? It's not like I said something too bad… Well, I'll just have to try again…"_

Standing on the balcony, Tsukuyo face palmed, Tae sighed and Sarutobi threw her hands up in despair.

* * *

An hour or so later, Sougo sat in the infirmary, letting Tae bandage or rather, mummify him. It was not like he had much of a choice; Kagura's punches were definitely _not_ to be taken lightly. As she wound a bandage around his arms, completely restraining him, Tae gave him a sweet, scary smile, before asking, "Sougo kun, just what kind of a proposal was that? Did you really think Kagura chan was going to agree to that?"

Tsukuyo put in, "Tha first part was good enough, but then…Where exactly did ya get tha' idea from? Any girl would hit ya fer it, yanno."

"Don't worry, Sougo san! I found that line wonderful!"

" _Sarutobi san, will you please shut up?_ But really though, it won't do if you confess using such _idiotic_ lines…. How about, 'all I want is you…will you please accept my feelings?'"

"Tha' ain't good enough, Tae. It's too common. How about…'Will you go to hell with me? We can be together forever…' "

"Just what the heck are you talking about, Tsukky?! Which sane girl is gonna agree to that? I think this will be just perfect, 'Spend your life with me, and we can do S&M play forever, my darling….'"

"THAT'S THE WORST!"

Sougo rolled his eyes at their animated discussion regarding suitable pick up lines, allowing his thoughts to wander away. _The last one wasn't too bad, but China will probably, no,_ _ **definitely**_ _kill me for it…. There's no use of confessing if I'm dead, so I'd better not. But hell, what_ _ **can**_ _I say? I've never thought of having to confess to a girl in my whole life, and I'm_ _ **not**_ _saying some dratted cliché either. But, actions speak better than words, don't they? That's how it's always been for us…Yeah, I've got it._

* * *

Kagura walked slowly down the corridor, muttering under her breath. _Curse that sadist for saying such stuff to me, curse me for being stupid enough to take him seriously, curse everyone for giggling, curse that sadist for messing with my brains, curse the whole universe for spoiling my mood today…_ The litany of curses came to an abrupt halt when she saw one of their subjects waiting for her at the end of the corridor. It was Sougo, heavily bandaged and bruised. A tinge of guilt rose within her at the sight of him, when she remembered that she was the cause of those bandages. _But he deserved that for messing with my feelings, uh huh!_

She was just about to begin an argument with him as usual, when he stepped forward, looking unusually solemn. Her heart nearly ceased beating as he slipped his arms about her waist, pulling her closer. And when he leaned forward and kissed her, her brain short circuited. She stopped thinking about why or how it was happening, or what was the right thing to do or what if anybody saw them; she just kissed him back. It tasted like chilies and coffee, and so… _like_ the sadist himself. _But why the hell was he even kissing her?!_

When they finally pulled away, Sougo was amused to see that she looked utterly shell-shocked. He wondered what she would do; hopefully, she wouldn't kill him outright. But hell, even she wouldn't be so dense as to misunderstand this, right?

"Sadist…why did you… Do you…"

"My god, China, do you really not get it? You idiot, I love you!"

"You-you…That ain't true! We are rivals, you always insult me and we fight with each other…. You're just trying to mess with my feelings, yes?!"

"So you finally admit that you do have feelings for me, China… But for goodness' sake, will you quit being so dense? Yeah, I do insult you, annoy you, hurt you, and a lot more, but hell, I love you! Though I'm only using that stupid word because I have nothing else to describe it… But I miss you when you aren't around, and enjoy fighting with you and I'm never bored with you around, even though you are an insufferable, disobedient, rude, ugly and insatiable glutton, so is that clear?"

"You sadist, are you insulting me or confessing to me, yes?! I knew it, only a jerk like you would be so clueless-"

She was cut off as Sougo kissed her again. As they parted, after a _long_ time, he asked her with a smirk, "If I'm clueless, then what does that make you, China?"

"Yup, it looks like we're totally suited for each other, Sadist."

Meanwhile, in an adjoining balcony, Tae beamed with pleasure, Sarutobi fainted with excitement and Tsukuyo grinned happily, even as she held a kunai against Umibozu's neck, in the event that he should burst in on the happy couple. Sadaharu gave a bark of approval, before beginning to chew his newest toy.

* * *

A few months later…..

Rain pounded down steadily as several hooded figures sped noiselessly in the direction of the palace of Edo. They soon reached the massive building, and flew down the battlements, weapons ready for a fight. Suddenly, the entire party came to an abrupt halt; their leader had come to a standstill, and was gazing down at an elegant pavilion on the palace grounds.

Many people stood under it, sheltered from the rain. A man with a silver perm was arguing violently with a black haired police officer. A long haired woman, no, man was lecturing a giant duck sitting beside him. Women glided around, serving, drinking and laughing without a care in the world. But the red haired man's eyes were riveted on a couple sitting on the steps of the pavilion. The sandy haired man patted a giant white dog beside them, while the red haired woman was almost out in the rain, holding a purple parasol and apparently scolding the former. Even from the heights, they could hear her clear, loud voice and several colorful words as well. But there was no mistaking the joy in her voice and the love behind her words. All of a sudden, she turned, looked up and smiled.

Abuto was pretty sure that she couldn't see them, and that she wouldn't want to either, but looking at her, for the first time, he somehow did _not_ want to go ahead with the mission they had come to do…. _I wonder if that idiot captain does… But he's never cared about his sister, has he?_

He soon received the shock of his life when the person in front of him tore his eyes away from the scene and began to go back the same way they had come, no trace of a smile on his face. Not daring to chuckle, he followed, signaling that the mission of destruction of Edo was abandoned.

The Yato soon were out of the city, and Kamui could hear them grumbling mutinously to each other. Well, they could do what they liked, as long as they remembered who the boss was. He felt Abuto come up beside him and voice the question, "Captain, why?"

Well, he didn't know that. He didn't know why the mere sight of his weak sister and her family prevented him from completing his mission. It wasn't that he felt any attachment to her. It couldn't be that he was weak. Then _why?_

And all of a sudden, the answer struck him, harder than any punch he had ever taken. _Standing in the rain, smiling, she looked just like his mother…. Just like Kouka. His mother, who had always got hurt due to his and the Baldy's stupidity, still lived on within her only daughter, who had never left her like they had. By fighting Kagura, he would just be hurting his mother again… and he couldn't do that._

But he wouldn't tell that to Abuto. Maybe the guy already knew…. So all he did was smile and tell Abuto to keep quiet if he didn't want to be killed. But before they boarded the Harusame ship again, Kamui made sure to leave a flower at his mother's grave in Rakuyou. Abuto did not fail to notice it, chuckling softly under his breath, "Well well, looks like monsters and psycho killers are also sons and elder brothers. My, my, who would've guessed?"

* * *

Somewhere in the alleyways of Edo, a fortune teller advised her customer, "Don't worry, my dear, Cupid always finds his targets, even if he shoots blindfolded."

* * *

 **A/N: So there ends the fifteenth and the last chapter! I hope it made a good read and also that the ending was a fitting conclusion to this story. Thank you all so, so, so much for reading and encouraging me all the way, it means the world to me. It's a little sad for me to end it here, but I'm really quite happy with myself about the story, though I hope that I'm justified in that, tee hee. A huge, huge thanks to Akely, nathan19bane, Hellooo, Putxi, Kimchimustard, Miku Walker, Torarara, Lia, Hirude, Furuchisa, Mellize and all the anonymous guests for their reviews, you guys keep me going! I do hope you review again for the last chapter, pleeeaaase?**

 **I know I've vacations now and all, but my workload seems to be getting heavier day by day, so I'll only be posting one shots in general. But hey, you can send me requests too! Though it's only my childish pride that makes me think that you will, tee hee.**

 **So please do take some time out to review and send me suggestions for improvement too; I love to know what you think of it. As always, follows, favorites, constructive criticism and anything else are very, very, much appreciated!**

 **Thanks a lot for reading and see you again in a new story!**


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